A goal from Álvarez three minutes into the second half was enough for Atletico Madrid to edge past Deportivo La Coruna 1-0 at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Saturday. Álex Grimaldo provided the assist, and the narrow win extended Atletico’s unbeaten run to five straight victories in La Liga. Diego Simeone’s side did it the hard way, though: Deportivo finished with a higher xG (2.02 to 1.44) and five shots on target to Atletico’s four, making Oblak’s five saves as important as Álvarez’s finish.
Key Moments
- 26′, Marc Pubill picked up a yellow card for a foul, Atletico’s only booking in the first half and a sign of early tension as Deportivo pressed with a compact 5-3-2 shape.
- 45′, Simeone made two changes at the break, withdrawing Pablo Barrios and Ademola Lookman and introducing Simeone and Robin Le Normand. The double switch altered Atletico’s attacking profile for the second half.
- 48′, Álvarez opened the scoring three minutes after the restart. Álex Grimaldo played him in, and the Argentine forward converted to give Atletico the lead they would hold for the remainder of the game.
- 67′, Lee Kang-In made way for Sørloth as Simeone looked to add physicality and keep Deportivo’s backline occupied in the final quarter.
- 80′, Three substitutions in quick succession: Deportivo brought on Kevin Sánchez and Jonathan Asp Jensen, while Atletico replaced Hjulmand with Rodrigo Mendoza as both benches attempted to influence the closing stages.
- 85′, Sørloth and Simeone both collected yellow cards in the 85th and 87th minutes respectively, adding unnecessary late drama as Atletico defended their lead.
Tactical Breakdown
Atletico lined up in a 4-3-3 and controlled the ball without necessarily controlling the game. They finished with 56 percent possession and 546 passes completed, but their 20 shots were inefficient: only four found the target, and 12 went off goal entirely. The xG numbers (1.44) suggest they were not creating high-quality chances at volume, and the one that mattered most came from a left-side combination between Álex Grimaldo and Álvarez just after the interval.
The tactical turning point was Simeone’s half-time double substitution. Removing Lookman, who rated 6.44 and struggled to influence proceedings, and bringing on Robin Le Normand alongside Simeone changed the defensive structure and gave Atletico more solidity on the right side of their back four. The goal arrived almost immediately after the restart, suggesting the reset had the intended effect of a sharper second-half start.
Deportivo actually fashioned the better xG (2.02) and had 10 shots from inside the box compared to Atletico’s six. Oblak was their main obstacle, making five saves throughout the match. The visitors’ 5-3-2 block created problems but their lack of cutting edge in the final third, illustrated by zero goals across a match in which they generated genuine openings, ultimately condemned them to a ninth-round defeat.
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Verdict
The win moves Atletico Madrid to 25 points, five behind league leaders Barcelona and one ahead of Real Madrid in third. Their five-match winning run in La Liga puts Simeone’s side in a strong early-season position, though Saturday’s performance, grinding out a result against a Deportivo side that generated more expected goals, suggests there is still work to do before Atletico can be considered genuine title contenders rather than solid top-two occupants. Deportivo, meanwhile, sit 10th on 11 points with their draw-heavy form (five draws in nine games) suggesting consistency without conviction.