In an unusual season in the Spanish la Liga, Atletico Madrid are currently second in the table and are ahead of their arch rivals Real Madrid. Even though they are several points behind the leaders Barcelona, the defender Dani Alves has said that it is Atletico Madrid who are their main title contenders this season rather than Real Madrid.

After winning the title last season, Madrid have been unable to build on the success this time around and have fallen 16 points behind Barcelona. Atletico Madrid, meanwhile, have been able to build on the arrival of Radamel Falcao and are currently second in the table.

The 29-year-old Brazilian defender has said that they should be looking at the team in the second place rather than the team in the third place. Barcelona managed to avoid just the second defeat of the season by managing to come back and draw the match against Valencia recently. The 1-1 draw was not take away too much of their lead at the top of the table because of the results elsewhere. Alves has said that he is extremely satisfied with the result given the circumstances of the match. He has said that Barcelona were clearly not at their best and a point is a welcome in that situation.

"People talk a lot about Madrid (Real) when our rivals are Atletico. We should not look to the team in third place, because there is a team in second. They are closer and, if we do not pay attention, they could surprise us. Given the circumstances of the game, we are leaving happy to have picked up something at a ground like this. When you are not at your best, you must be intelligent - if you cannot win, you need to get a point," said Dani Alves.