The Williams electrocute a stiff Atlético
It was a match with a classic aroma, of freshly cut grass, of dark leather balls. A meeting “made in Euskal Herria”, as the initial typo of San Mamés said, of two teams with similar proposals: intensity and determination. An electric current was unleashed in the Bilbao stadium as soon as Jon Rahm took the kick-off at the entrance to the locker room. But, while the volts revolutionized Athletic Club, Atlético was electrocuted. [Narrative and Statistics, 2-0]
Two sticks, a missed penalty and several heads-up. All in just 45 minutes. All from the team led by Ernesto Valverde. A bath, come on. Simeone's men tried to put the game to sleep with inane possession, while every time they lost the ball they got a spark from the red and white forward.
The Bilbao offensive was not three-phase but four-phase. The Williams, Sancet and Guruzeta did what they wanted with the mattress defense. This had a surprising presence, that of Söyüncü, who went through an ordeal culminated with a penalty that, fortunately for him, was missed by Sancet for wanting to adjust the squad too much.. Simeone saw him and took him out quickly at half-time for Giménez. Better known bad…. as the saying goes.
The one who did not pass it was Lino, but due to failure to appear on the line that is assumed when Atlético does not have the ball. The Brazilian still has to learn to play as a winger, in his mind he is a winger who supports, when he wants, the defender. Hermoso suffered a lot every time Iñaki Williams attacked him and Lekue hit him.
There was a great decompensation not only at the level of intensity, but also in positioning. Simeone's classic 5-3-2 was shipwrecked by Txingurri's 4-2-3-1. The red and white team entered through the interior corridors without anyone to harass them.. Atlético's midfielders saw themselves at a disadvantage against the waves launched mainly by Iñaki Williams and Sancet.
Simeone also saw it and, at half-time, the Argentine switched to 4-4-2, bringing on De Paul to help the hard-working Saúl, Koke and Llorente. There were 45 minutes left and the news for Atlético was hopeful: in their worst game of the season against a great rival, they returned from the dugout tied at zero goals.
Likewise, some were still electric and the others electrocuted. The intensity went through neighborhoods and those in green missed it. Maybe I had to see the amount of effort that Simeone's team had and that they had left before Christmas, four games in 10 days, a lot of fabric. This is not a calendar, it's a juicer.
And of course, if the Williamses find stiff players, they take the opportunity to pass them like cones. That's what Nico did to take a corner that would end with the first goal of the game. He took it himself, the ball ended up in the boots of his brother who eliminated two Atlético defenders as if they were planted on the grass, he unloaded on Herrera who tempered so that Guruzeta, more alone than anyone, finished off against a defenseless Oblak.
Oblak savior
Oblak complains about a play in the match against Athletic. AFP
The Slovenian, precisely, was the main person responsible for Simeone's team being only one goal down.. The saves he had made throughout the game were reminiscent of those times when his name was among the best goalkeepers in the world.. One at the base of the post to Guruzeta after a pass from Sancet in the early stages of the game was something to watch on a loop.
The timer had not marked 60 minutes when Simeone took out Memphis and Correa, removing Saúl and a surprised and surprising Griezmann. The Frenchman who this season ate at the table of the best in the world did not appear. Lots of gunpowder, but worse occupation of spaces. Athletic, delighted to take advantage of it on the counterattack, as they did.
In 64 he launched Lekue at Nico who cut Witsel and Hermoso out and left them in the mold and launched a remote-controlled missile to pierce Oblak's squad.. The only way to score against the Slovenian, because two minutes later his brother tried from the same position, but a little closer, and the goalkeeper responded with another iconic save at the base of the post.
Unai Simón did not want to stay behind his professional colleague and saved the peace of his team with a double hand 10 minutes from the end against a shot from Llorente, alone at the far post, and an unfortunate rebound from a defender who arrived to try cover. Quid pro quo.
As the statistics say and as Simeone lamented in the preview, the home team won the game. Athletic was better, but Atlético does not perform the same away from the Metropolitano. If only the home games counted, the rojiblancos would be leaders with eight wins from eight games, while away games they would barely be seventh in the table with only three wins in the same games.