Madrid (AFP)
Atletico Madrid came back from afar, avoiding a historic defeat at home to Cadiz, after turning a two-goal deficit into a 3-2 victory, in the eighth stage of the Spanish Football League, thanks to a “double” by Argentine Angel Correa.
With its third victory in a row and the fifth this season, Argentine coach Diego Simeone’s team raised its score to 16 points in fourth place, a point ahead of Real Sociedad, who won over Athletic Bilbao (14 points) by three, while Cadiz’s score froze at 9 points in twelfth place.
Cadiz seemed on its way to its first victory ever in the home of Atletico, in the history of their league confrontations, which began in 1977, after leading by two goals, contrary to the course of the match, but the homeowner did not give up and fought fiercely to return, until he succeeded in coming out with the three points.
Atletico started the match pressing, and were close to opening the scoring, less than three minutes after the start, but luck was against Frenchman Antoine Griezmann, after his shot bounced off the left post, and then the French striker followed it with another opportunity that was saved by Argentine goalkeeper Jeremias Ledesma.
Cadiz’s response was harsh, as it took advantage of poor concentration in passing the ball from the hosts to snatch the lead through Brazilian Lucas Pires, after a cross from Chris Ramos (12), and then the surprise was complete, when the visitors added the second goal in the 27th minute, through Roger Marti with a shot. Beautiful bitch over Slovenian goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
But Angel Correa brought the host back into the atmosphere, by reducing the difference in the 32nd minute with a header, following a cross from Cesar Espilicueta. Then Simeone’s men began the second half by equalizing through the other Argentine, Nahuel Molina, whose shot from the fallen defender Javi Hernandez was diverted into the net (46).
Correa struck again in the 66th minute, putting Atletico in the lead, after he broke the offside trap, following a pass from Saul Nigues, before he shot into the net, to be the goal that decided the difference between the two teams in the end.
In his second consecutive start with the first team, the young Senegalese native, Hassan Diaw, found his way into the net, and led Real Betis to victory over its guest, Valencia, 3-0.
The 18-year-old opened the scoring in the 41st minute, after he also scored in the last stage’s 1-1 draw against Granada, before Marc Roca added the second goal in the 52nd minute and the Moroccan “substitute” Abdel Samad Zalzouli III in the 85th minute, confirming the team’s third victory. Andalusia is in seventh place, while Valencia fell to tenth with ten points.
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