Depay saves Atlético with two blows
A double from the Dutch forward in the second half avoids a first scare in the Cup against a Lugo who sold their defeat dearly (1-3)
MADRID, 6 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Atlético de Madrid beat CD Lugo (1-3) this Saturday at the Anxo Carro in the round of 32 of the Copa del Rey 2023-2024, thanks to a definitive double from the Dutchman Memphis Depay in the second half, to avoid the which would have been an initial scare in the competition at the hands of a Galician team that sold their defeat dearly.
The pupils of 'Cholo' Simeone, who will be in the draw for the round of 16 this Monday, forget with this victory their bad dynamics away from home, until now with three defeats in a row, the last of them, against Girona and in the last minutes , very painful because it leaves them 10 points away from the head. Therefore, the people of Madrid take a break before the Spanish Super Cup in Arabia that starts next Wednesday.
The red and whites were faced with fortune from the start, and just two minutes after the initial whistle they saw how the path was paved with Ángel Correa's 0-1. The Argentine '10' opened the scoring by shooting into an empty net after a good assist from full-back Javi Galán, who took advantage of one of his few opportunities so far this season.
The goal gave that security and tranquility that is sometimes missing in these Cup trap matches. However, after a couple of good warnings from a participatory Memphis Depay, the locals grew supported by the encouragement of Anxo Carro. And it was in Antonetti's boots that the clearest one came for the Galicians, with a shot that Giménez took on the goal line after a good flown cross.
That occasion turned out to be a warning from the locals, who had the Puerto Rican as their main threat. And in a long ball, taking advantage of the size and speed of the Lugo forward, he dried up Söyüncü and Giménez with a great cut and then shot with his left foot from the front, close to the post and impossible for Oblak.
The red and whites protested a play prior to the goal in which they asked for a penalty on Azpilicueta due to a foul by the local goalkeeper Tabuaco, but the referee, without VAR, did not award the maximum penalty. Thus, Paulo Alves' men found reward for the work they had done throughout the first half, without giving up despite the goal conceded in the first seconds.
Diego Simeone did not trust the home side's push at the end of the first half and moved the bench after the break, bringing on three heavyweights such as Antoine Griezmann, Koke and Rodrigo de Paul. But the changes did not change the face of an Atlético team that was flawed and imprecise with the ball, with no chances in the second half until after the 60th minute.
Only Lugo came close to breaking the tie, with a great header from Quintana that hit the crossbar. A warning that seemed to wake up the people of Madrid, who at their worst moment saw the light with the long-awaited 1-2 that would restore order to the match. Depay, who was not playing a good game, received a good ball from Koke in the big area, where he cut back a defender and beat Tabuaco with the inside.
The goal put the final stretch of the duel on track, with a more organized Atlético under the leadership of Koke and De Paul, who provided more freshness and clarity with the ball. A qualitative leap that was confirmed with the 1-3 that ended the match, again from the boots of Depay, who sent a ball into the net from Llorente's baseline on the right, to punish a Lugo who fought until the end, but he was left without a gift.
The pace of the match slowed down, although there was time to see some flash of Álvaro Morata, who sent a ball to the crossbar, and Giménez completed his superlative match with another outstanding defensive action to avoid the second goal against. The toll of the match could be the injury of César Azpilicueta, who had to go to the locker room before the end due to a knee problem.
DATASHEET.
–RESULT: LUGO, 1 – ATLÉTICO DE MADRID, 3. (1-1, at rest).
–ALIGNMENTS.
LUGO: Tabuaco; Louis-Jean, Perez, Castrin, Lopez; Anthony (Fountains, min. 84), Jozabed (Sharp, min. 76), Ojeda, Narrow (Gonzalez, min. 67); Quintana (Aranda, 67 mins) and Antonetti (Ledesma, 76 mins).
ATLÉTICO DE MADRID: Oblak; Molina, Azpilicueta, Giménez, Söyüncü (Koke, min. 46), Galán; Witsel, Riquelme (De Paul, min. 46), Saúl Ñíguez (Llorente, min. 68); Correa (Griezmann, min. 46) and Memphis Depay (Morata, min. 75).
–GOALS:
0-1, min. 2: Ángel Correa.
1-1, min. 39: Leandro Antonetti.
1-2, min. 66: Memphis Depay.
1-3, min. 74: Memphis Depay.
–REFEREE: González Fuertes (C. Asturiano). He cautioned Quintana (min.35) at Lugo and Azpilicueta (min.32) at Atlético.
— STADIUM: Anxo Carro.