Atlético runs out of league runner-up in injury time

Villarreal draw (2-2) in a controversial final stretch at La Cerámica

MADRID, 4 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –

Atlético de Madrid drew this Sunday in their visit to Villarreal CF (2-2) for matchday 38 of LaLiga Santander, without taking advantage of Real Madrid’s setback against Athletic Club (1-1) and ultimately not being runner-up, conceding an untimely goal by Jorge Pascual in extra time.

The Estadio de la Cerámica witnessed a last day of the league where the locals no longer had anything at stake, anchored to fifth place, while Diego Pablo Simeone’s pupils did have the option of finishing the course in second position; but for this they needed more points than their city neighbor could achieve against Athletic.

In the early stages, control of the ball was yellow. And as a result of this, Samu Chukwueze had the first chance in the 6th minute with a left-footed shot from the right corner of the area, after a distant action from set pieces, but which went high. And almost immediately, Villarreal opened the scoring thanks to the work of their most successful player.

Elected MVP of LaLiga last May, Nico Jackson returned to ‘wet’ after a mess in the mattress defense. In a counterattack, Manu Trigueros controlled the ball in his own half and approached the midfield line; from there, he raised his head and saw Chukwueze on the right flank, who crossed to the opposite side.

But Pablo Barrios, in his eagerness to withdraw and with a clearance attempt by heading the ball, inadvertently assisted Jackson. Located a few meters in front of where Chukwueze had accelerated the play, the Senegalese striker accommodated Barrios’s involuntary pass and finished off a cross, with a far from neat strike, to beat Ivo Grbic.

The Croatian goalkeeper, a starter in the last month and a half due to Jan Oblak’s injury, has only left a clean sheet once in that period. But the Atlético of 2023 bears little resemblance to the one that ended in 2022, and it does respond to blows. Said reply was given by Ángel Correa, with a right hand that stumbled on Aïssa Mandi’s chest.

It was the prelude to the 1-1 draw in the 18th minute, marked by Correa himself in a strategic action from set pieces. As a result of a lateral free kick, Antoine Griezmann assisted low into the heart of the area while his teammates Mario Hermoso and Stefan Savic acted as a screen for their respective markings, which the visitor’s ’10’ made the most of.

Having escaped from Kiko Femenía, Correa separated a few meters back to finish off from below. The trajectory of his shot caught a thread that made it pass between Mandi’s legs until it lodged in the bottom of the tights. Fifteenth goal assist for Griezmann this season, thus being the main focus of his team in attack.

Although later the ‘Yellow Submarine’ tried his luck with a couple of long shots, that hardly worried Grbic. In addition, the rojiblanco team prowled for the second goal in the 39th minute, with a graceful Correa who leaned to the right to cross into the head of Saúl Ñíguez; This one, inside the rival area, put Filip Jörgensen in trouble.

In his rejection, Griezmann fired ‘ipso facto’ and the ball bounced off Mandi’s left arm as he was diving to the ground. Although all of Atlético claimed a penalty, since the yellow defender’s hand was not resting on the grass, the referee Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea did not decree anything and did not consult the VAR either.

With obvious gestures of anger, but equally wasting sarcasm, the ‘Cholo’ Simeone transformed that mishap into positive energy during the break. His pupils returned from the changing rooms quite toned, with Griezmann and Correa ready for each race. And in the 56th minute that situation came to a head at 1-2, scored by Correa himself on the counterattack.

Koke Resurrección stole a ball near his own area and combined with the Argentine ’10’, who opened the left side for ‘Grizi’. Quickly, the Frenchman noticed that Correa had shot forward, so he made a pass into the hole; and saving Jörgensen’s exit with a slight touch, Correa scored his second goal of the day at will.

A few minutes later, the left winger Sergio Reguilón was close to third. Thanks to a boarding by his band, he entered the ‘Submarino’ area and shot too cross, to a pass from the protagonist Correa. However, the visitors’ joy turned into uncertainty due to the expulsion of Axel Witsel in the 71st minute.

DIRECT RED TO WITSEL AND GRBIC INJURY

After a bad clearance from a teammate to the back, the Belgian central defender did not understand himself in the coverage with Hermoso and then he was forced to retreat, ending up tripping Gio Lo Celso when he was going to stand alone in Grbic’s area. De Burgos Bengoetxea did not hesitate and gave Witsel a direct red card.

With one man less, Atlético dedicated themselves to draining ‘water’ until the final whistle. Lo Celso, dribbling the free kick in which he had been tripped, ran into Grbic in his mid-height shot. Shortly after, the Croatian goalkeeper deflected a right foot from Álex Baena; and both crossed again in another dangerous foul from the front.

Baena hit a shot that went close to the top corner, but Grbic flew in to clear that ball for a corner. After a couple more saves, the mattress goalkeeper was injured in the umpteenth corner kick and had to be replaced in the final stretch of the match by Antonio Gomis, goalkeeper of the subsidiary.

In the extra time, with the ‘Submarino’ overturned in the opposite area, the young Jorge Pascual scored the final 2-2 in a play much protested by Atlético. In a jump between Álvaro Morata and Pau Torres, the yellow center back hit the rojiblanco forward on the back; similarly, De Burgos Bengoetxea ignored it.

The activity continued and the ball reached Baena, who passed Jackson long, so that he defined against Gomis. But in his dribbling he couldn’t get around two central defenders, although he did get around the reserve goalkeeper, and Pascual appeared around there to take advantage of it and finish off into the back of the net. That target embittered Atlético, who finished LaLiga third and with 77 points.

DATASHEET.

–RESULT: VILLARREAL, 2 – ATLÉTICO DE MADRID, 2. (1-1, at halftime).

–LINEUPS:

VILLARREAL: Jörgensen; Women (Cuenca, min.46), Mandi (Mojica, min.85), Pau Torres, Moreno (Pascual, min.85); Parejo, Capoue, Trigueros (Lo Celso, min.66); Yeremy Pino, Chukwueze (Baena, min.66) and Jackson.

ATLETICO DE MADRID: Grbic (Gomis, min.85); Molina, Savic, Witsel, Hermoso, Reguilón (Morata, min.84); Saul, Koke, Barrios; Correa (Lemar, min.84) and Griezmann.

–GOALS:

1-0, min.9: Jackson.

1-1, min.18: Belt.

1-2, min.56: Belt.

2-2, min.90+2: Pascual.

–REFEREE: De Burgos Bengoetxea (C. Vasco). He yellow carded Moreno (min.36), Capoue (min.40) and Baena (min.75) at Villarreal, and also Barrios (min.69) and Correa (min.76) at Atlético de Madrid; he sent off Witsel with a direct red card (min. 71) at Atlético de Madrid.

–STADIUM: La Cerámica, 18,226 spectators.