ATHLETIC-ALAVÉS | With the lesson learned

Athletic is going step by step towards graduation. It seems to have the lesson learned. After letting a three-point loot escape due to his bad posture in the final moments against Rayo and Valencia, this time he managed to hold out a scrawny 1-0 against Alavés, without suffering beyond a timid shot from Pellistri in the last sip. The rojiblanco team seems to be reliable again at home, although it is hard for them to win, and the Glorious returns to its sad and worrying reality.

Calleja came to Vitoria with the idea of ​​playing football well, of painting good pictures on the grass. He wanted to surround the ball with violins, but he has ended up hiding the musical instruments in a dark and damp grotto, so that they can be eaten away. His Alavés was locked behind for 45 minutes with two lines of eight players in total. Bilbao's bus station is close to San Mamés. It is called Termibus. One of the coaches escaped to the soccer field. It was driven by the Glorious One. Their plan is great when they get ahead, sooner or later, and the concrete wall defends that rent. He happened to Atlético. But when it is the enemy who advances on the scoreboard, things go wrong. He's not ready to dominate and set the pace, so he only tracks the opposing area by chance.

LaLiga Santander

* Data updated as of October 1, 2021

Athletic clearly prevailed in the first half. In 21 minutes he had four corners and as many fouls. He was the one who proposed the most and the result is more than fair. Before the babazorra network, he was patient and interpreted the positional game wonderfully, alternating the short and long pass. Although a very close and tactical match was expected, there was rhythm, yes, because the lions came out on fire, before an enemy that took a world to adjust to the local proposal. Muniain was a torment acting through the middle, out of his usual place, to the left. He contacted the offensive front filtering passes that were daggers towards Pacheco. Not even that could be read by Calleja's pupils, who had a track on their right wing with Martín and De la Fuente and barely stepped on that shore.

And later the rojiblancos were great managing the strategy. When they defended a babazorro set piece, they became strong and came out like bullets on the counterattack. And when they had that privilege, they finished it all up against three timid centrals. Vivian had the first in minute five. He finished off a header corner and the ball hit a little below the shoulder of Ximo Navarro, who was on his back. The referee was alerted to a possible penalty and after checking it on the screen located at the foot of the field, he decreed the punishment. Raúl García launched it, but Pacheco denied him the goal.

LaLiga Santander

* Data updated as of October 1, 2021

Muniain kept floating between the lines and making caricatures of the Vitoria pediment. Athletic pressed like a man possessed the exit of the albiazul steering wheel. Raúl pulled out his thorn near the half-time, with a corner in which Marcelino's pupils changed the score: Berenguer took Muni short and he made a couple of wriggles without the ball to disorient the enemy. Lekue joined and Iker gave it to him. The latgeral centered precisely so that he finished only in the far post Rulo. Martín was already stunned at the first distraction pass of that long plan.

Calleja changed the plan a bit after the break. He took Sylla off the island he was imprisoned on in the attack and put Joselu first and Guidetti later. The Swede took off his warm-up shirt and revealed an oil painting of tattoos on his back. It was like clicking a switch that fired Alavés trying to play further from their own goal. They strengthened the midfield with a 3-4-3 when they had the ball and began to breathe on Unai Simón. The game was dynamic and could make present what had happened in the last game of both contenders: the mess of Athletic in Mestalla and the blessing of the Glorioso against the reigning champion Atleti. Print missing.

The Alavés continued to move. He got four behind in the last quarter of an hour. Marcelino brought Zarraga, Vencedor and Dani García together for the first time in the creation area. The time for slates and innovations. The people from Vitoria had better intentions but almost the same danger as in the first half: they were unable to put fear into the enemy's body. They never finished believing that they could generate uncertainty in the adversary. They were left half. Athletic is an expert in spoiling a good night, in playing with fire, but in the derby they corrected their fateful tendency to suicide.