Atlético Madrid made a thrilling return to La Liga in Saturday afternoon’s city derby: the Rojiblancos did not let themselves be rattled by falling behind against Real and ultimately deserved their 5-2 win.
The moods ahead of the Madrid city derby could not have been more different. On one side was the mighty Real, who had won all of their first six La Liga games, and on the other was a struggling Atletico with only nine points to their name. However, the Rojiblancos got off to a flying start in front of their home crowd. Coach Diego Simeone’s team pressed high up the pitch and didn’t give the visitors a second to catch their breath.
It was therefore no surprise when they took the lead after just under a quarter of an hour: Simeone’s cross found Le Normand, who headed home powerfully from close range, leaving Courtois with no chance (14′).
Arda Güler sets up and scores
Real, however, did not seem shocked by this at all—and turned the game around in the style of a top team. With their first attack, the Royals already made it 1-1, with Mbappé sinking the ball into the far corner after a fine one-two with Arda Güler (25′). Eleven minutes later, Le Normand made a mistake, was then beaten by Vinicius Junior, and Arda Güler scored the 2-1 with a technically demanding finish in the middle (36′).
But Atletico did not collapse because of this, with the recently outstanding Alvarez hitting the outside post from distance (39′). Shortly afterwards, the Metropolitano was in uproar, but Lenglet had scored with his forearm – after VAR intervention, the goal was rightly disallowed (43′). However, the 2-2 equalizer was still to come, as captain Koke found Sörloth with a cross and he took advantage of Huijsen’s positioning error (45’+3).
At half-time, Xabi Alonso had to take off center back Eder Militao, who had been in pain since his great save against Sörloth in the third minute. Asencio replaced the Brazilian. Atletico came out of the dressing room much better and more aggressive, with Alvarez now the outstanding player in their ranks.
Alvarez’s big moment
After Arda Güler’s high challenge, Atletico were awarded a penalty, which the Argentine world champion coolly converted (51′). Real were now floundering and could hardly get a foothold in the game. First, Alvarez fired a free kick over the bar, then Sörloth failed to beat Courtois from close range (59th, 62nd). However, the Belgian was powerless to stop Alvarez’s next free kick, which landed right next to the left post (63rd). Atletico then defended with their usual passion and compactness. Xabi Alonso tried to make an impact from the wing, but Rodrygo was unable to make a difference. At the end of a heated final phase with many niggles and verbal exchanges, Atletico even secured a 5-2 home win, as substitute Griezmann scored his first league goal since February 1 (90+3). With a home win against Real Sociedad on Sunday, Barcelona could take over the top spot in La Liga from Real.
In this form, Atleti fans are certainly looking forward to Frankfurt’s Champions League visit to the Metropolitano on Tuesday (9 p.m.). In the same competition, Real will face Qairat Almaty on the same evening, starting at 6:45 p.m.
