Atletico Madrid set the course for another season in the Champions League with a 3:1 victory over Athletic Bilbao. The game was overshadowed by a racism scandal
Atletico Madrid went into the clash with Athletic Bilbao under pressure. The slip-up at Deportivo Alaves (0:2) had set the Rojiblancos back in the battle for fourth place, with the Basques having moved to within three points with a 1:1 draw against Granada.
However, Atleti withstood this pressure in the traditional comparison and secured a six-point lead for the final phase of La Liga 2023/24 with a 3-1 win. The Madrilenians still have five games to go. The opponents seem mostly doable with Mallorca (A), Vigo (H), Getafe (A), Osasuna (H) and Real Sociedad (H). But what does that mean in this inconsistent season for Simeone’s side, who have conceded the most defeats in the top 7 of the table with nine
Scandal before the break
Argentinean Rodrigo de Paul opened the scoring after a quarter of an hour with a deflected and therefore unstoppable shot from the second row, the 29-year-old’s second goal of the season. The inglorious highlight came shortly before the break when racist insults were hurled at Bilbao’s Spanish international Nico Williams. Atletico captain Koke asked the visiting professional to apologize during the two-minute interruption. Williams, in turn, responded in a sporting manner shortly afterwards, finishing a Basque counter-attack in front of Oblak to equalize the score at 1:1 (45′).
The second period belonged to Atletico. Koke found Correa with a precise vertical pass, which the Argentine striker skillfully picked up before keeping his nerve in front of Unai Simon – 2:1 (52′) and goal number nine of the season for Correa.
Unai Simon in bad luck
Cup winners Bilbao were now challenged, but the next goal was also scored by their opponents, who had recently failed to beat Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Samuel Lino shot at goal from a half-left position and hit the left post, from where the ball bounced off the back of the rushing goalkeeper Unai Simon and into the net (80′). Samuel Lino could, and almost should, have made it 4:1 on a counter-attack in the closing stages following a Griezmann pass (90′). In the end, it remained 3:1 for Atletico
The winners will travel to the Balearic island of Mallorca this weekend, with kick-off at 9pm on Saturday. Bilbao play the day before and must return to the Madrid area – Getafe host them on Friday evening to kick off matchday 34.
