NEW YORK -- Giancarlo Stanton wants to return from his knee injury in time to fine-tune that powerful swing for October.

Sidelined nearly all season, the New York Yankees slugger is hitting indoors and throwing as he rehabs from a sprained right knee that's been slow to heal since he got hurt June 25. The next step will be jogging and running outside before ramping up baseball activities.

General manager Brian Cashman originally targeted August but now says the American League East leaders hope to get Stanton back sometime in September.

"Once I start moving around, just see how it bounces back. But I do want to have a few weeks of at-bats before October, for sure," Stanton said Thursday in his first comments to reporters in some time. "I want to be out there for a couple weeks, just the game routine and having whatever amount of at-bats I can."

The 2017 National League MVP said he's confident he'll return to health this season but has no particular date in mind.

"I'm doing everything I can to get there, so that's what this process is and that's what I'm working for," the 29-year-old said.

"The deadline is when my knee is ready to play major league games," Stanton added. "So if something happens to that, then I can always get at-bats, non-big league at-bats, but by close to big league pitching, to catch me up if need be. But that is the deadline -- not any rush past when my knee is ready."

Stanton strained his left biceps March 31 in his third game of the season, strained a shoulder and calf during his rehabilitation and returned June 18. He quickly went down again and is batting .290 with one home run and seven RBIs in nine games this year.

The outfielder and designated hitter was transferred to the 60-day injured list Sunday.

"It's been brutal on my side, but it's been really good to see the team playing so well. I mean, that's what's really kept it not so bad for me is just to watch everyone bringing together wins in all different type of ways, not one hero every night," Stanton said. "That's what I've been focusing on. Not poor me, all this stuff. I'm just watching how good we've been playing and just, what strategy for me to come file in. Not to just be back playing, but to get another little boost to what we've already been doing really well."

Despite a series of injuries to All-Stars and other accomplished players, the streaking Yankees began the day tied for the best record in the majors with the Los Angeles Dodgers at 81-41.

Pointed toward the playoffs, New York held a 10-game lead in the AL East with 40 to play.

"I'm definitely glad to be hitting and moving around. Still got a lot of work to do, but I'm definitely glad for that," Stanton said. "Just waiting on this knee to be full go and then we'll be ready."

NEW YORK -- Jimmy O'Brien's mind began racing.

The clock on this mid-July afternoon was ticking past 5 p.m. He needed to work fast. His first thought? This will be big. REALLY BIG. Get something to the masses as quickly as possible. They'll devour it.

With his brain flipped into hyperdrive, the 30-year-old New Jersey man and full-time New York Yankees fan started digging into his bag of software editing tricks. He sensed a duty to help explain to those who followed him -- and even to those who didn't -- just what exactly happened during one incredibly bizarre scene at Yankee Stadium.

Check screen No. 1. Rewind. Listen. Read lips. Listen harder. OK, got it. Cut the clip. Check screen No. 2. Fast-forward -- no, wait, rewind back a little more. What in the hell was Brett Gardner doing with his bat? Cut the clip. Go back to screen No. 1. Fast-forward again. Wait. Stop. Stop. Stop. Did Aaron Boone just say what it sounded like he said?! Listen hard. Read lips. Wow. He did.

Cut the clip.

Some 15 minutes after Boone, the Yankees' second-year manager, was tossed from the first game of New York's July 18 doubleheader with Tampa Bay, O'Brien -- better known on social media by his Twitter/YouTube handle of "Jomboy" -- had shared with the world a simple subtitled 21-second video that would become a defining piece of the team's season.

It's all because of what Boone said in the now-viral video to first-year umpire Brennan Miller as he bemoaned what he believed was a missed call. The rant, one of the more memorable in recent baseball history, ultimately fired up the Yankees fan base, leading to the now-infamous "Savages in the Box" rallying cry.

However the Yankees' season ends, this saying will carry them throughout. They can thank O'Brien for that.

"My guys are f---ing savages in that f---ing box, right?" Boone said to Miller in the second inning of the game. "And you're having a piece of s--- start to this game. I feel bad for you. But f---ing get better. That guy is a good pitcher, but our guys are f---ing savages in that box. Our guys are savages in the f---ing box. Tighten it up right now, OK? Tighten this s--- up."

O'Brien's video [WARNING: Sensitive, uncensored language] gave the internet a rare up-close glimpse of what life on the field sounds like. All season, he's found similar peeks into on-field baseball life at other ballparks too, thanks in large part to an ambient-sound feed provided by Major League Baseball.

When O'Brien -- who has turned his passion for sports into a full-time gig -- sits down each night as first pitches are thrown around the country, he does so in front of an elaborate multiscreen setup. He has two computers and one television, all tuned in to baseball -- typically that night's Yankees game. On the television: the live feed of the game. On the computers: the local streaming feeds -- YES Network for the Yankees and the regional broadcast partner for their opponent. When he happens to spot a quirky moment he thinks could be enhanced by the ambient-sound feed, he switches over to that. All of these streaming feeds are easily accessible to anyone with an MLB.TV package.

"If I see or hear anything that can damage someone's reputation I usually shy away from it, but to be honest, that really hasn't happened so far. I think, in most of the dustups, the overwhelming reaction is that the players and umpires are human and get swept away in frustration and emotion the same way all of us do." Jimmy "Jomboy" O'Brien

Once O'Brien sees action he considers worth sharing, he goes to work, using his self-taught method of cutting, splicing and editing digital video.

"You know the scene in 'The Social Network' when the decoders go at it? With him, it's about two hours -- of that," said Jake Storiale, O'Brien's longtime friend and Talkin' Yanks podcast co-host. "The hard work is what people kind of don't get about what he's doing. It's not, here's some video, here's some audio. It's not that."

O'Brien's video editing background isn't the only thing that has helped his creations take off. So too has his and Storiale's belief that they can create a groundswell of fresh interest in the sport.

From brawls, to contentious back-and-forth at-bats, to pitching mechanics, to random ballpark machinations across the league, O'Brien, with the help of Storiale, plus an intern and an army of volunteers, offers what he calls "breakdowns," which feature mostly humorous, sometimes obscene and often easy-to-digest commentary. His longer, two-minute, 23-second breakdown of the Boone ejection came later in the evening.

Not everyone is thrilled about these videos. Some in the sport think they could be dangerous. But others see them as a burst of joy amid baseball's marathon nine-months-long season.

"I know fans want to be involved as much as they can," Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge said. "They like seeing the inside part of the game, because a lot of times they don't get to see that stuff."

For O'Brien, that's precisely the point of everything he has done since he revived his once-dormant Twitter account two years ago.

"To educate the fan base sounds lame and like I'm an old-school teacher, but that's how you get the entertainment going," O'Brien said. "Fun, with a little bit of education."

O'Brien is no stranger to wanting to be part of the action on the field at Yankee Stadium. Family members still lovingly tease him about the night when, as a 7-year-old, he ran up to his big-screen TV and pretended he was jumping into the dogpile on the screen as the Yankees celebrated winning the 1996 World Series. A couple of years later, while briefly living in Australia, he'd watch World Series games on VHS tapes. Since the games came on when he'd be heading to school in the morning, his mom -- under constant threat of being muzzled so she wouldn't spoil the results of the game -- would record them for the family to watch later in the day.

Recording game video goes back a long way in the O'Brien household.

And it has borne a few surprising consequences.

For starters, last month's glimpse into Boone's in-argument persona led to a burgeoning boom for startup companies like O'Brien's Jomboy Media group, which has nearly 300,000 subscribers on YouTube, up from just 2,000 two months ago. There are at least three different versions of "Savages in the Box" T-shirts, all created by different entities. Some have even been worn regularly by players at Yankee Stadium, where there are now similarly branded T-shirts and caps for sale at the team store.

Along the way, Boone has earned an added measure of respect from many in the Yankees fan base, thought he'd prefer to have earned it in a different way.

"I had some choices of words that weren't great, especially in a public setting where kids are going to get a hold of that stuff, so you're not necessarily proud of that," Boone said the day after his tossing from Miller. The manager, whose cap made contact with Miller's, was suspended for a game.

"If I was Major League Baseball, I would actually consider hiring him. Because I'm sure with their resources he'd have even more material to work with, and have him pump out the same kind of videos for them, but be able to do them at even a higher technological level." YES Network play-by-play announcer Ryan Ruocco on O'Brien

Regardless of how remorseful Boone was in the immediate fallout from his ejection, his players and staff still loved every minute of what they later saw on O'Brien's "Jomboy" Twitter feed.

"Boonie had some mixed thoughts about it right away, because there obviously are some things that you don't want out there," Yankees assistant hitting coach P.J. Pilittere said. "Sometimes mantras for teams can happen organically that way, and that's kind of, I guess, the social [media] world got to see behind the curtain a little bit of what we really believe that we are."

Pilittere was so struck by O'Brien's wit and baseball savvy in the few breakdowns he'd seen, he decided to reach out. He wanted O'Brien to know that he and a few others in pinstripes were watching -- and approved of what they were seeing.

Whether it was Boone's eruption, Trevor Bauer's tossing of the ball from the pitcher's mound over the center-field wall in Kansas City or the Pirates-Reds pre-trade-deadline brawl, Yankees players have joined their coaches in glancing at O'Brien's videos when they hear, by word of mouth, of something they need to check out.

"When you do something that creates a stir within the principals in the sport, usually that means people outside of it are going to enjoy it too," said Ryan Ruocco, YES Network play-by-play announcer and co-host of the R2C2 podcast with Yankees starter CC Sabathia.

Ruocco said it was Sabathia who first put one of O'Brien's original "breakdowns" on his radar.

"All the stuff he does is different and funny," Sabathia said.

Two years ago, as the Yankees were making a somewhat unexpected run toward the postseason, they embraced the thumbs-down sign. It was a nod to the Mets fan who went viral after being caught on camera showcasing his displeasure at a Yankees home run during a Yankees-Rays game that had been moved to Citi Field as Hurricane Irma struck Central Florida.

While embracing the thumbs-down, the Yankees posed for a clubhouse picture. O'Brien ended up offering his lighthearted take on how various players were sporting their thumbs in the picture.

"I zoomed in and I was like, '[Tyler] Wade, good form, tight fist.' I was like, 'Clint [Frazier], looking the wrong way, not ready, just got called up,'" O'Brien recounted. "I kind of just made jokes. One was like, 'Judge, your knuckles are loose, buddy. You've got to tighten those knuckles up.'

"And then on the next R2C2, they talked about it. And I was blown away. You don't realize the internet can go far. CC was like, 'I keep telling Judge to keep tightening those knuckles up.' That was like heart eyes for me."

There has been some concern in the upper levels of the Yankees organization about what might happen if the ambient-sound mic catches players or coaches on any big league team saying something more regrettable and less funny than "f---ing savages in the box."

On at least one occasion, weeks before Boone's blowup scorched the internet, Yankees officials contacted MLB to inquire about how it might better legislate the way O'Brien or anyone else uses audio from the games -- particularly games in which players, coaches or umpires are not specifically miked up.

The league has yet to respond to the Yankees' inquiry.

When ESPN reached out to MLB regarding the way its broadcast feed has been used for the types of videos O'Brien has been making, the league declined to comment.

O'Brien has been given permission by those running the league's social media channels to continue posting his content, but they could claim certain videos for their own if the situation arises, since he's technically using their broadcast footage. He's fine with that.

As generally mum as the league has wanted to stay on this issue, its disciplinarian and chief baseball officer, Joe Torre, did address the growing hot-mic concerns Tuesday when he was at Yankee Stadium promoting his foundation.

"It is part of growing the game. But again, when there isn't that type of oversight and you're just kind of floating out there without a parachute, that's some really treacherous, dangerous ground that could be really personally damaging to a player, and also for the team -- and for the league, for that matter." Yankees vice president of communications and media relations Jason Zillo on hot-mic videos

"It wasn't supposed to be that clear," Torre, the former Yankees manager, said of the ambient-sound feed fans can access. "It shouldn't happen. That's just crowd noise and stuff." Added Torre, who was recently surprised that a 37-year-old video of one of his own profanity-laced managerial tirades surfaced: "[Arguments are] not something you're proud of. There is an entertaining value when you go nose to nose, as long as it ends there. ... When it starts getting personal, that's dangerous."

In his capacity with MLB, Torre spoke to Boone during his visit about keeping his composure, as well as the hot-mic issue.

Still, Yankees vice president of communications and media relations Jason Zillo says the team wants the league to do more about what O'Brien has been creating.

"[I] certainly appreciate and respect where we are in 2019, where part of growing the game is giving some of that personal and intimate dialogue and baseball give-and-take over a nine-inning game through mics," Zillo said. "But there has to be some type of guardrail to mitigate or eliminate what could become a very dangerous situation, where if players or teams aren't made aware that there is the potential of some type of live mic picking up any and all sound throughout the game, that could really become a slippery slope and it could be damaging to a team. It could be damaging to a player's career.

"Again, I appreciate, and we effort to acknowledge that intimate moments, when used with discretion and with oversight -- whether it be Fox or ESPN and/or [Major League] Baseball -- clearly there's a window for that and it should be pursued by all parties involved because it is part of growing the game. But again, when there isn't that type of oversight and you're just kind of floating out there without a parachute, that's some really treacherous, dangerous ground that could be really personally damaging to a player, and also for the team -- and for the league, for that matter."

Boone echoed Zillo's sentiments, saying just this week he believed the hot-mic videos to this point have been executed fairly and without malice. But he did also think more could be done by all parties involved to ensure that continues to happen.

"There's a responsibility to be careful with it and careful with how do you use that, and how do you protect certain things," Boone said. "For the most part [it's being handled responsibly], but everyone could probably do a little better job of making sure."

O'Brien understands those concerns.

"If I see or hear anything that can damage someone's reputation I usually shy away from it," O'Brien said, "but to be honest, that really hasn't happened so far. I think, in most of the dustups, the overwhelming reaction is that the players and umpires are human and get swept away in frustration and emotion the same way all of us do."

Judge contends that's why, whether the dugout microphones are hot or cold, he's going to play with the same level of fire, emotion and passion.

"I'm working. So if I say something that's not supposed to be out, I mean, I'm competing out there," Judge said. "Sometimes when you're competing -- and this is our livelihood, so we're out there trying to compete as best we can -- things are going to come out. F'n savages or things like that, a couple of cuss words and stuff like that, but that's part of it. We're working. I never want to shield what I'm saying."

A link with content creators like O'Brien could be an opportunity for MLB as it seeks to bring the game back to prominence among younger generations -- the same generations subscribing to O'Brien's YouTube channel at an accelerating pace.

"That's the thing that's crazy about the YouTube channel and tying it all to baseball," Storiale said. "The people that subscribe to the YouTube channel are the young, target demographic. And if one of those gets posted, it's going to get six-figure views -- at minimum."

O'Brien's channel in fact received more than a million views for each of his breakdowns of Boone's ejection vs. the Rays, as well as the ejection Gardner got just last week in Toronto. It also got about 550,000 views for a video O'Brien did tracking the epic and entertaining 13-pitch at-bat last Sunday between flamethrowing Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman and Blue Jays rookie Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

MLB's video of the Chapman-Guerrero battle earned just shy of 170,000.

"If I was Major League Baseball, I would actually consider hiring him," Ruocco said. "Because I'm sure with their resources, he'd have even more material to work with, and have him pump out the same kind of videos for them, but be able to do them at even a higher technological level."

Ruocco believes O'Brien has left his imprint firmly on this Yankees year -- even if some with the club are uneasy about that.

"He will forever be tied to the 2019 season," Ruocco said. "When we look back at 2019, we're always going to think of Jomboy blowing up and creating entertaining content for us to enjoy."

Local sprints star Matt Hudson-Smith is ready for his first race of the year at this weekend’s Müller Grand Prix at the Alexander Stadium

Matt Hudson-Smith makes a belated beginning to his 2019 track season on Sunday when he tackles the 400 metres. It is his first race since the IAAF Continental Cup last September after a succession of injuries have so far prevented the Birmingham-born athlete from opening this season’s campaign.

Hudson-Smith was due to race at the IAAF World Relays in May but withdrew due to an injury – just one of several niggles he has struggled with lately. But he believes his late start to the season could prove a blessing in disguise.

“Because I’m starting my season later I might not be as jaded as some athletes who have been racing since January,” he says. “My situation has its benefits and has its weaknesses.”

He adds: “I’ve been in worse situations before with illnesses. Before the English Schools in 2013 I was ill and only prepared for two weeks (Hudson-Smith won 200m gold).

“In 2016 I had a similar kind of preparation as this year but it was less publicised (he ran 44.61 to place eighth in the Olympic 400m final in Rio). So I’m used to this kind of situation where it’s a tight fit and we’ll just go with the flow.”

Hudson-Smith continues: “My coach (Lance Brauman) doesn’t want to rush it because we know it doesn’t take me that long to get fit. Doha is where it matters and the bigger one is the Olympics in Tokyo. If you’re going to do it then it’s best to do it properly.

“It helps that this is a long season. If it was a normal season then I probably wouldn’t have made it. But it’s funny how things work out.”

A rare talent, Hudson-Smith made a name for himself in 2014 when he ran 44.97 at a Diamond League meet in Glasgow before improving to 44.75 in Zurich to place runner-up to Martyn Rooney at the European Championships. At the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow he also anchored England to 4x400m victory.

“It seems like a lifetime ago,” says Hudson-Smith, who is still only 24. “But I only moved up to 400m in 2014 so I’m relatively new to the event and only just starting to get to know what works for me and what doesn’t.”

Hudson-Smith has also been settling into life in Florida with a Braumann-coached group that includes fellow Brits Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, Jazmine Sawyers and Desiree Henry. He moved there in autumn 2017 and describes it as a “big drastic change” but adds: “I wouldn’t change it for the world. It’s a great place to train.”

Certainly it paid off during 2018 when he won the European 400m title in Berlin in emphatic style. Clocking 44.78 he won by more than a quarter of a second (pictured below) and he also won the British title in 44.68.

Problem is, lots of his training this year has involved cross-training and gym work. “I can tell you now,” he laughs, “if my stability hasn’t improved 10-fold this year then I’ll be surprised I’ve been on underwater treadmills, wobbly boards, you name it.

“I’ve been cross training like a nutcase. At the start I found it boring but my coach told me it served a purpose and once I got my head around it I got it done.”

Which parts has he dreaded most? “Probably the assault bike. It literally made me cry. I did intervals – hard on/off – and it was simulating the build-up of lactic. Also, aqua jogging has been hard. A couple of times I nearly drowned. I had a float on but my head was under the water!”

Given this, he is eager to put spikes on to race. “Things have gone well in recently and my coach is happy and he wouldn’t have let me run if he wasn’t happy,” he says.

Aged 24, he still has time on his side when it comes to breaking Iwan Thomas’ long-standing UK 400m record of 44.36 too. “I’ve had my eye on it for so long now!” says Hudson-Smith, whose best of 44.48 was set in the Olympic semi-final in Rio.

“It’s definitely coming. Iwan keeps bantering me and he says he did it when he was aged about 27-28, so I have time to do it yet.”

ALISO VIEJO, Calif. – Speakers and presenters taking part in this year’s Performance Racing Industry Trade Show Education program represent a who’s who of industry experts and top performers on the track, in the shop, and behind the businesses that specialize in race parts and services.

Attendees of the 2019 PRI Show, set for Dec. 12–14 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, will have more opportunities than ever to pick up valuable tips and takeaways during an expanded seminar lineup covering a wide range of topics — from sales and marketing strategies to finding and hiring qualified employees to best practices in race track operations and much more.

In fact, included among this year’s expanded educational programming are several technical seminars focused on race engine technology, a roundtable with top sanctioning body representatives, a panel discussion featuring top female drivers, and more than a dozen business-focused sessions guaranteed to help racing professionals boost their operations ahead of the 2020 season.

“The quality and quantity of educational programming offered at this year’s PRI Trade Show is nothing short of extraordinary,” said PRI Editor Dan Schechner. “PRI Education has put together an incredible lineup of top-flight presenters and panelists in order to deliver unprecedented value for Show attendees and exhibitors. Regardless of the business or racing segment you’re involved in, we guarantee you’ll come out of our seminars more informed and better prepared for future success.”

With more to be announced in the coming months, speakers scheduled to participate in this year’s PRI Education program include:

• Engineer and author David Vizard: With more than 30 automotive books and 4,000 magazine articles, Vizard is one of the world’s most widely published automotive writers. His technical seminar will offer insights and lessons from Vizard’s 50 years of engine customization.
• Lake Speed Jr. of Driven Racing Oil: Speed, a certified lubricant specialist, plans to discuss the latest evolutions in oils and fuels as they relate to direct injection engines, diesel engines, modern engines, and vintage engines.
• Darin Morgan of Reher-Morrison Racing Engines: In his seminar on key advances in modern cylinder and port design, Morgan will go in-depth on how efficiency has increased power over the years while uncovering the pitfalls associated with this technology.
• Jason Enders of RE Suspension and Gary Crooks of Port City Racecars: Enders and Crooks team up to present a seminar on bump stops and provide the necessary working knowledge to help teams better understand their race cars. Attendees will learn about the latest technology that short track asphalt racers are using to push the envelope.
• Jeanette DesJardins of Car Chix and Crank It Media will moderate an all-female panel that includes racing standouts Natalie Decker, Lea Ochs, and Sarah Burgess discussing opportunities for women in motorsports. Attendees will hear about their challenges, triumphs and lessons learned, and better understand how to market to, engage with, and raise awareness among young women interested in pursuing motorsports as a career.
• NHRA Announcer Alan Reinhart: Reinhart will lead a roundtable featuring representatives from ARCA, NASA, IMCA, NMCA/NMRA, and other race sanctioning bodies discussing a range of topics at the forefront of motorsports today, such as controlling costs, technical specs, and rules enforcement.

This year’s PRI-sponsored seminars, which are presented free of charge for all registered Show attendees and exhibitors, will be broken out by tracks—Sales & Marketing, Business Operations, International, Opportunities in Racing, Sanctions & Tracks, and Technical Education. All sessions are 60- to 90-minutes long and will take place in the Convention Center’s upstairs meeting rooms during all three days of the Show in the Convention Center’s upstairs meeting rooms. More information on specific seminar times, dates and locations is available at prishow.com/education.

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – Matt Kenseth, the 2003 NASCAR Cup Series champion, will serve as Grand Marshal of the NASCAR Xfinity Series CTECH Manufacturing 180 on Aug. 24.

Kenseth, from Cambridge, Wis., a two-time Daytona 500 champion, racked up 39 victories at 19 different tracks and took the top honor in 2003 as the NASCAR Cup Series champion.

Kenseth also boasts an International Race of Champions title in 2004, and qualified for the Playoffs in 13 of 14 seasons. Kenseth’s 39 Cup Series victories ranked him 19th all-time entering 2018. He also recorded 20 pole positions, 181 top-five finishes and 327 top-10 finishes in 650 starts or more than 50 percent of his total Cup starts.

Kenseth has also collected 29 wins in NASCAR’s Xfinity Series, with his last victory coming in the series’ at the season-finale event at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2014. Kenseth has earned 139 top-five finishes, 202 top-ten finishes, and 17 poles in his 288 starts in the series.

Kenseth will sign autographs for fans at the CTECH Manufacturing Trailer near victory lane from 11:30 a.m. to Noon. He will then wave the green flag at 2 p.m., to start the race.

“The only bad thing about it is I have to realize I am old enough to be a Grand Marshal,” Kenseth said with a laugh. “Seriously though, it is a big honor to be the Grand Marshal of such a big race. It is also close to my home. It is very nice to be honored with this and I am glad CTECH Manufacturing selected me for this year’s event, this means a tremendous amount to me.”

The 2019-20 La Liga season kicks off this weekend and much of the attention will be on the top three teams fighting it out for the title. Graham Hunter gets you ready for the new campaign with a look at how their offseasons unfolded.

Jump to: Will Felix be La Liga's star? | Can Atletico's new arrivals shine? | Did Real do bad business? | Neymar a distraction for Barcelona?

Atletico Madrid have won the summer, hands down.

Diego Simeone's team having sold over €300 million of talent and brought in over €240m of young, hungry replacements (to date) means that even if either of their La Liga arms-race rivals managed to land Neymar before the window closes on Sept. 2, Barcelona sheepishly pick up the silver medal, with Real Madrid not only third (where they finished the last two La Liga campaigns) but frantically trying to convince everyone that bronze looks awfully similar to gold.

If only there were a trophy to show for it. The transfer-related tag of "Summer Champions" signifies about as much as the increasingly heard but slightly risible tag of "Winter Champions" for those who sit top of the table when the Christmas break arrives.

Nevertheless: a job well begun is a job half done, right? So let's give more than just kudos and a patronising pat on the back to Atleti. They faced what looked like a horrendous challenge, haemorrhaging a mix of experience, winning mentality, club legends and two superb young bucks in Rodri and Lucas Hernandez. Yet their judgment, efficacy of market management, speed of work, ability to spot the revelation of this transfer window (or indeed many previous), Joao Felix, and their net spend of around €8m -- if you factor in the €60m arrival of Rodrigo from Valencia -- suggests that Atleti have spat in the eye of adversity.

Whether it wins them La Liga remains to be seen, but a summer that could have left them fighting an uphill battle now sees them muscular, nimble and potentially able to punch above their weight. This season in Spain is going to be exciting, a real smackdown between the three giants of La Liga -- Barca, Real and Atletico -- so here are some talking points.

Will Joao Felix be La Liga's star?

Felix is only 19, still rather slender and will find it testing to work with Atletico manager Diego Simeone and coaches Mono Burgos and Oscar Ortega. Felix is a La Liga debutant with initiation songs to sing, pranks to put up with, and image-management by the club imposed on him so that expectations are dampened after his €126m arrival.

Yet, this is a kid blessed with such extraordinary talent, such chutzpah, acceleration, positional wit and an exceptional eye for goal that his Atleti teammates are already instinctively looking for him whenever they have the ball. Every single player in that squad has taken one look and said: "We have signed a diamond -- let's get him on the ball."

- When does the 2019-20 La Liga season start?
- ESPN La Liga fantasy: Sign up now!

If the composer George Frideric Handel were still alive, Atleti would be commissioning him to compose a second Hallelujah chorus. They have found their Messiah.

No matter his talent, a player of Felix's age, carrying such a weight of expectation and responsibility, will encounter bumps along the road in his first complete season in La Liga. That said, the move remains extraordinary for a number of reasons. With Madrid and Barcelona involved in what is both an unseemly and, arguably, unnecessary squabble for Neymar's grossly expensive services, don't they both look stupid for missing the chance to purchase Felix? The answer is a resounding "YES!"

Moreover, Atleti somehow managed to agree with Benfica, the player and his agent, Jorge Mendes, a payment plan where they only have to splash out in the region of €40m (down payment, agent payment, sell-on payment to Porto where he originated) before the rest is paid over the course of his contract. If Felix performs well enough to help Atleti reach at least the Champions League semifinals, the forward could earn his new club the entire remainder of the fee within nine months. That. Is. Utterly. Astonishing. Business.

Can Atletico's other new arrivals replace those who left?

Losing Rodri (€70m to Manchester City) and Lucas (€80m to Bayern Munich) are blows Atletico would have wanted to avoid, but the club have long known they would need replacing at some point.

At the back, even though Diego Godin -- who left for Inter this summer -- was bedevilled by errors last season, it's worth waiting to evaluate the loss of his personality and "win at any cost" attitude. But for Atleti to add the tall, tough Felipe from Porto, as well as the talented Mario Hermoso, for €30m less than Bayern were forced to pay for Lucas, is spectacular.

Kieran Trippier's move from Tottenham came out of the blue, but while he might not be as attentive to details and defensive concentration as Simeone likes, his attitude and crossing ability should give A+ service to what should be a thrilling Atleti front line.

None of Renan Lodi, Hector Herrera or Ivan Saponjic make you fret for Atleti's investments, while Marcos Llorente, signed from hated rivals Real Madrid, is a fine facsimile of Rodri. They aren't identically talented but Llorente was under-priced at €30m, brims with energy, industry and athleticism, is a superb professional and looks ready to make Atleti's central midfield punishingly hard-working.

Then there's the "other Rodri," Rodrigo Moreno. If Atleti wrap up a €60m move for this athletic, relentlessly team-minded striker, who has been playing winning international football with Koke and Alvaro Morata since they were all kids, it's the icing on the cake.

Atletico have had one hell of a summer. But it's not over yet. Spain's transfer market closes on Sept. 2 and there's still time for huge change, though they are already looking in better shape than their rivals.

The fact that several key veterans chose to leave at the end of their contracts had threatened disaster, but it can now be construed as advantageous. Madrid and Barca are replete with players on high wages they'd like to ship out but who are refusing to budge. Not Atleti.

Has Real Madrid's spending addressed their needs?

Atleti's rapier-like approach to business contrasts starkly with Real Madrid's blunderbuss style. Yes, they've splashed out (at the time of writing) €305.5m (gross, not net) and there's quite a lot of "rock 'n roll" glitz to boast about with the likes of Eden Hazard. But have they specifically reinforced the things that went awry last season? Have they done what coach Zinedine Zidane wanted this summer?

In short, no. And an utterly horrific 7-3 thrashing imposed on Zidane's team by Atletico at the ICC tournament in July suggests that Real might not even be favourites in their own city, let alone for the La Liga title.

Left-back Ferland Mendy was indeed a Zizou choice, and has sparked Marcelo's competitive instincts, but at €48m it's not good that Mendy is already out with a thigh injury. Centre-back Eder Militao may turn out to be an ideal buy, but Zidane has been flitting uncertainly between four at the back and a 5-3-2/3-5-2 system, so we'll see how quickly the €50m 21-year-old (a €40m+ profit for Porto just 12 months after buying him) can bring security at the back.

Rodrygo and Kubo (an 18-year-old Japanese starlet who was initially part of FC Barcelona's academy until their FIFA ban was imposed) ooze promise, thrills and a sprinkling of the magic dust of international marketing allure, yet will struggle to make a real impact until they gain a bit more experience.

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Hazard adds the pedigree -- unquestionably a talent of gargantuan proportions -- but why on earth did the €100m winger turn up for work at his new club, one that is in turmoil, in the kind of preseason shape that would have been acceptable in, say, 1978? It's not Madrid's fault but it's certainly emblematic of dipping standards.

And finally, €60m striker Luka Jovic will score goals but looks well short of having the build-up play and savvy that Madrid will need against the elite group of Liga and European clubs they measure themselves against. He's that mythical breed of striker who "only" scores goals. An odd, expensive signing.

The players who have arrived all add their own parts of youth, athleticism, hunger and energy -- valuable commodities in what was a moribund Madrid squad last season -- but there are still more weaknesses in the business that club president Florentino Perez and his right-hand man, Jose Angel Sanchez, have managed to conduct since May.

Gareth Bale, with the Premier League and Chinese transfer markets now closed, has stayed put -- despite Zidane admitting in public that "it would be best" if the Welshman left -- and is likely to stay unless PSG accept him in part exchange for Neymar or he's sent out on loan.

Thus far, there has been no move for Man United midfielder Paul Pogba either. Whether the controversial World Cup winner is or isn't the cure for Los Blancos' midfield ills, Zidane is wedded to the idea of buying him and has been infuriated by Perez's failure to secure that deal.

If Neymar arrives, it will be like salt in the wound. Thus far, Real's best midfield options are Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, which although still full of class, is bemusing. Slow, sometimes disinterested, porous, unable to control possession, lacking athleticism and physicality all last season, it's remarkable that (attempts to sign Pogba aside) no corrective action has been taken to strengthen the midfield.

Will Barcelona be distracted by Neymar pursuit?

Judging them by their own, well-publicised objectives for the close-season, Barca could award themselves a complacent pat on the back, a glass of cava, exchange mutually appreciative smiles among their football executives -- and then their rivals could laugh up their sleeves at the Camp Nou finances.

Barcelona's self-set task sheet was: add competition at left-back, augment possession-control and passing in midfield and then, a year late, add French flair up front. Junior Firpo, Frenkie de Jong and Antoine Griezmann (was there really any doubt where he was going?) tick those boxes.

Throw in some measurable progress from their young talents (Jean-Clair Todibo, Carles Alena, Ricki Puig and Carles Perez) and the outward signs are decent. However, even with the departures of Malcom, Andre Gomes, Marc Cucurella and Denis Suarez, Barcelona need to sell ... and profitably.

Rafinha, Philippe Coutinho and Juan Miranda must be calculating how long it'll take them to unpack their training ground lockers, while if the right price were offered for Arturo Vidal then the Camp Nou bean-counters would produce their abacuses in Olympic time.

The club has vastly strained its financial muscle for three reasons. 1) expensive contract extensions; 2) investment in the Camp Nou renovation project; 3) President Josep Maria Bartomeu's public promise that his parting gift (before summer 2021, which is the latest there can be elections to determine his successor) will be another lengthening of Lionel Messi's contract.

Messi craves Champions League victories, not because Cristiano Ronaldo has more of them but because he's a natural-born competitor who has also suffered a series of brutal European disappointments in recent years at the hands of Atletico, Juventus, Roma and Liverpool.

If Bartomeu wants "Team Messi" to look indulgently on the opening of contract negotiations, he'll do well to re-patriate Neymar. Messi, whether you concur or not, believes that his Brazilian pal will add incisor teeth to Barca's European bite (Luis Suarez hasn't scored a Champions League goal away from home for nearly four years and hit the net only five times in the last 29 UCL matches).

However as long as PSG keep insisting on cash only for Neymar, whether that sum is €120m or €220m, Barcelona can't afford to buy him back. I believe it's that simple. Nor, it seems increasingly clear, can they persuade Ivan Rakitic or his Sevilla-born wife that the footballing life (and climate) is anything but worse any further north than Barcelona. PSG want the Croatian, but like Bale at Madrid, he's not keen to depart.

All of which leaves both Barcelona and Madrid desperately thrashing around for a means to secure a Brazilian they can't afford, didn't budget for and who'll also cost them dearly in terms of existing playing staff (Vinicius Jr., Isco, Karim Benzema and Rodrygo at Real; Ousmane Dembele and Coutinho at Barca) who'd be required to drop to the bench or leave altogether.

Meanwhile, over at Atletico, Felix may still only hint at the potential to reproduce what Neymar has achieved in his career, but the Portuguese is impressing with a new cadre of athletic and hungry teammates around him.

Atleti win the summer. Now, can they add the La Liga title?

Hold tight, this battle has the potential to be immensely entertaining, explosive, and potentially embarrassing for some.