Atletico Madrid skipper Gabi has revealed that he cannot wait for the new campaign to begin.

Atletico begin their La Liga title defence against Rayo Vallecano on Monday evening and Gabi has insisted that the team can deal with the "expectation" of being league champions.

"It's a very exciting season in which there will be a lot of expectation on us," Gabi told AS.

"We understand that people expect us to succeed every day but we know who we're playing against and the monsters we're facing. We will fight with our weapons, as always, but with our feet on the floor. Let's go step by step to create dreams and keep people with us and enjoying our game.

"We've got an identity and a gap between two teams with more resources than we do. That is the reality. We can't hide it and it's all thanks to our work. We have worked to earn this gap and must continue, although we know it's difficult to repeat what has been achieved."

Atletico won their first La Liga title since 1996 last term.