The Atletico Madrid manager is also a property mogul with almost 200 homes and plans to build more

Diego Simeone has topped up his staggering earnings with a property empire worth £34million. The Atletico Madrid boss, whose side host Manchester United in the Champions League on Tuesday night, is one of the best-paid managers in the game with an annual salary of around £14million per year.

And that's after recently taking a pay cut from his previous wage of £17m per annum. Away from football, the Argentine has diversified impressively by building a Madrid property portfolio of 180 homes, mostly flats in the heart of the Spanish capital.

He hasn't just snapped up flats but seven entire buildings. The scale of Simeone's property has been revealed by the Equipo de Investigacion show presented by Gloria Serra.

Property is a thorny issue in Spain, with complaints of high prices, a housing shortage and evictions, but the Simeones have made hay. The show says Simeone's wife, former model and presenter Carla Pereyra, fronts their main property company called Carpersim SL.

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! Latest news, analysis and much more on Mirror Football's Facebook page

According to the firm's financial statements filed with the Mercantile Registry, the assets held by this company are worth around €39.7, just under £34m.

In the Equipo de Investigacion report, Cote Villar, of the lifestyle website Vanitatis, says: "They have opened an agency to handle rentals for these properties, and their most recent financial statements, covering the 2024 fiscal year, show assets valued at around €40m."

Villar adds that Pereyra, who has a family background in architecture, is the "driving force behind the business" and "knows the sector well."

The couple reportedly expanded their interests in 2024 by forming another company, Tres Cantos 1415, through which they acquired a plot of land in northern Madrid to build additional developments, including student accommodation.

For now, Simone will be focused on his side's Champions League date with United. Atleti have already suffered one defeat to an English side this season after losing 2-1 at Liverpool in Matchweek 1.

In the league, though, they have made a strong start, sitting second in the table, five points behind Barcelona, who boast eight wins out of eight so far. Atletico returned to action after the international break with a 2-1 win at Alaves on Saturday.

The sides met in pre-season, with Bryan Mbeumo's brace securing a 2-1 friendly win in Sweden. However, following Saturday's 1-1 draw with Tottenham, United boss Michael Carrick is coming under mounting pressure.