Author: Serg Atrakhov, Amrit Santlani
Rayo Vallecano – Atlético – 0:7
After two “dry” 2-0 wins (over Almeria and Granada), Rayo Vallecano were ahead of Atlético in the standings (Simeone’s side beat Granada 3-1 and were held to a 0-0 draw by Betis). But in a head-to-head, Rayo suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of their countrymen. In the second minute, after a pass from Paul, Griezmann riled up the Rayo fans (for the first time this evening) – 1:0.
Depay spent just over half an hour on the pitch, but he managed to do a lot in that time: he was dangerous with a shot (the goalkeeper saved in the 5th minute), scored a goal after a pass from Saul in the 16th minute and was injured. Álvaro Morata, who replaced him, scored twice, scoring Atlético’s fourth and sixth goals (in the 73rd and 84th minutes).
Note that immediately after Depay’s injury, right-back Molina made it 3-0, taking advantage of a brilliant pass and pushing the ball into the empty net, with De Paul providing a second assist. The score remained 3-0 at half-time, the three points already secured, but Simoene’s men weren’t finished yet.
In the second half, Angel Correa turned goalkeeper in the 79th minute – it was goal number 5. Marcos Llorente put the finishing touches to the rout in the 86th minute – 7-0. Incidentally, Brazilian midfielder Samuel Diaz, aka Lino, came on for the winners in the 68th minute, replacing Yannick Carrasco.
Note that the last time Rayo beat Atlético was 10 years ago, in the 2012/13 season. On that occasion, the score was fixed at the Campo de Vallecas – 2:1. In the following 13 matches (including this one), the club lost 11 times with a total score of 29:2.