There are certain conversations within sport on which you wish you could eavesdrop. Mike McDaniel and Diego Simeone is one of those conversations.
Two weird, wonderful, colourful and charismatic leaders in their own right, two of the smartest in their respective fields and two men who adore every aspect of football. Their version of it, that is.
The Miami Dolphins have spent the week training at Atletico Madrid's Metropolitano Stadium as they gear up to host the Washington Commanders at city foe Real Madrid's Bernabeu in what marks the NFL's first regular-season game in Spain this Sunday.
It resulted in McDaniel getting an audience with Atletico manager Simeone, who was seemingly fascinated by the league's financial approach to roster construction.
"It's really cool, I'm well aware of this franchise and Atletico is something I've grown up looking at as a big organisation," McDaniel told reporters in Madrid on Friday.
"So, anytime you get to spend some time with a coach, particularly one with all the successes that he's had, like, it's pretty cool. It probably took 30 seconds maybe and you start diving into the National Football League salary cap.
"In other words, it's overwhelming because there's so many different problems that you're solving that are so unique, whether that's how you train, how you handle your players or how you assemble your roster.
"I've been honoured to have our team in this facility and have just been treated so graciously. I was honoured to be able to spend time with him - it made me even more mad at myself that I'm not fluent in Spanish."
Once upon a time the Metropolitano had emerged as a strong candidate to host the NFL's pending Spain bow, only to see the $1.5bn Bernabeu renovation lure the league in Real's direction as an unequivocal commercial win around the globe.
Atletico, though, have swallowed what might have been a bitter pill and have this week ensured they remain under the spotlight as headquarters to the Dolphins. Fernando Torres and Antoine Griezmann have been among the superstars to attend practices, while the Metropolitano opened its doors to Dolphins flag football clinics in aid of growing the game.
Simeone, was, of course, also present as he expounded his own footballing knowledge.
"He was very inquisitive about how many people we have," added McDaniel. "So like there's a 53-man roster plus 16 practice squad people. It also blows my mind how many games he has to prepare for.
"But we talked about that briefly, and then the challenges of getting good players or having a good quarterback and developing players, and then I had to run up to go coach some people.
"It was enthusiastic and energetic, and I wish it were a longer piece of time, but who knows where the conversation would have led. I feel very fortunate to even spend a brief time with him because he's arguably the best in the business in that role, so it was a pleasure for me, and again, wish him the best.
"Both our brains returned with this eagerness of wanting to learn, and wanting to take advantage of the opportunity. There's always overlapping reasons why people are successful. I think it was shorter than maybe we would have liked."
A self-confessed historian, McDaniel said he would try to afford himself the opportunity to explore Madrid on Friday afternoon following practice.
"There's a lot of history here, so I think I'll start with the gigantic park that's right around the corner and go from there.
The Dolphins and Commanders both arrive 3-7 on the year as Miami come off the back of their shock 30-13 win over the Buffalo Bills. Washington are without star quarterback Jayden Daniels and lead wide receiver Terry McLaurin as Dan Quinn turns to Marcus Mariota and a weapons room of Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Deebo Samuel and Zach Ertz.
The Miami Dolphins face the Washington Commanders at the iconic Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, live on SportNews NFL from 2pm (kick-off, 2.30pm). or .
