Three-asy does it for Atlético against Valladolid
With pressure building on Diego Simeone in the Atlético hot seat, a victory against a struggling Real Valladolid side seemed imperative to boosting his job security. Simeone’s charges got off to the perfect start when, despite donning an eye-catching pink haircut, the Valladolid defence lost sight of Antoine Griezmann, who flicked a delicate ball round the corner for Álvaro Morata to duly convert. Having provided the first, Griezmann got himself on the scoresheet moments later, turning home Nahuel Molina’s delivery and doubling Atlético’s advantage.
Perhaps the Atlético players were acutely aware that their manager's destiny was in their hands, and that incentive had them home and dry by HT. Griezmann was pulling the strings, and he was again involved for Los Colchoneros’ third, floating a free-kick into the area which Mario Hermoso turned home at the second time of asking. Valladolid’s task was always going to be a tall order after the break, but they certainly made a good fist of trying to manufacture a way back into the game, with Álvaro Aguado flashing an effort agonisingly wide of the post.
Not keen to rest on their three-goal lead, Atlético continued to probe for a fourth goal, and they couldn’t possibly have come much closer to finding one than when Ángel Correa crashed his effort off both posts before the ball bounced away to safety. With the game effectively wrapped up, Simeone introduced Memphis Depay for his Atlético debut and the Frenchman almost made an instant impact when he dinked the ball over Valladolid stopper Jordi Masip, but some smart defending from Jawad El Yamiq ensured the visitors wouldn’t be embarrassed further.
On the whole, it was a successful night for Atlético and Simeone, though they still have a long way to go if they are to secure UEFA Champions League football for next season. As for Valladolid, they were never expected to win here, but with the bottom three all yet to play this weekend, their problems could deepen in the next 24 hours.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Antoine Griezmann (Atlético Madrid)