Villarreal 2-Atlético 2 | Survival on the edge

It was after Oblak harangued Felipe and Hermoso for the ease with which Villarreal stood in his goalIn the umpteenth corner, Correa intercepted a Parejo ball in the central circle, raised his head and saw. Rulli was early. He rubbed his right boot and whispered, before hitting it: “Flying”. And flew. Rulli was giving passes backwards while looking up and he saw that ball coming from so far away, 52 meters, it would fall on him like a meteorite kilometers in diameter. Boom. Atlético started the absolute dominance of Villarreal in the best way. Knocking him down from the scoreboard.

Because Emery’s solution to the casualties was perfect. Gerard Moreno, only upstairs, was a torment, always between the lines, here, there, throughout the attack front and Alberto Moreno was indecipherable: Estupiñán stretched on the left while he got inside to play freely. Moi Gómez and Trigueros were shielding. Villarreal had football, dominance and danger. The Atleti seemed condemned to defend themselves since they stepped on the grass. An Atleti without skill in the exits, on that 4-4-2 that in the first part was only a system of broken lines, with a broken back. If meritocracy had been the news in his eleven (Cunha and not João, the Kondogbia-De Paul couple sitting Koke), soon it was his inability to play a ball. Villarreal’s reaction to Correazo was great: get up, shake off the dust and run as if nothing had happened. There is no game that does not leave scars and only one way could they rebuild Rulli’s gloves: drawing fast.

Gerard Moreno looked for him and ran into the post first and then Oblak, when he tried for a penalty. Parejo found it by sending the rejection of that penalty to the network, precisely. But when the footballers headed downtown to play again, the referee was holding a finger to his ear. VAR call: the ball had hit Parejo in the hand. Canceled after passing through the screen. Pau Torres really did it when he opened that wound in Oblak’s goal again: stopped ball, ball that those gloves that before everything worked miracles could not block, ball that the Villarreal footballer hunted to send it to the back of his net.

The Atleti pounced on the break like a walker through the desert on a drink of water. I needed it, I asked for it. The ball gave him cramps. It did not last. His heartbroken and waste football. The grass at Rulli’s feet was still virgin, her gloves already patched. Koke watched from the bench like Capoué and Parejo They gave Kondogbia and De Paul a game lesson.

Rest brought no changes. Koke and João got up from their seats, yes, but only to warm up on the band. The only modification of the Cholo was a step inside Lemar to leave the entire band to Lodi. Scratched a corner. And that’s it. Emery scratched at the sides while Simeone insisted on closing a door from the inside that, at Oblak’s feet, was open. His guardians were Felipe and Hermoso and, of course, it is known, they are transparent. Alberto Moreno culminated Villarreal’s comeback, after moving away from the mark, unloading on Gerard and bringing his fabulous filtered pass to the net. Oblak touched the ball for nothing just suspense. Felipe missed putting a coffee and some pastries on Alberto Moreno while he went to goal.

In one go, Simeone made the three changes that his team had been asking him for a while. Vrsaljko, Koke and João. The 4-4-2 demolished, the new system, with three centers and two lanes, gave him a speed that he had not had. Talent made him better. Five minutes later Carrasco won the baseline, found Correa. The Argentine shot, Rulli repelled but did not block. His rejection came to Kondogbia who slipped the ball under his body. Tie. And a siege by minutes of Atleti that was left without more prize. Villarreal seemed to collapse, without legs, until Pino entered to overturn it, again, on Oblak. Kondogbia saw the second yellow and went to the shower and both teams died on the shore, with a point that neither fully fills.