Atletico Madrid have had their run of five wins in a row halted by Besiktas on Wednesday night, albeit in a friendly. Los Colchoneros travelled to Turkey to face the Turkish giants at the Vodafone stadium in order to raise money for the victims of the earthquake in the same country.
The natural disaster took the lives of around 50,000 people and has seriously impacted on millions in the form injuries, damages and losses. It registered 7.7 on the Richter Scale.
Atletico played a side mostly containing rotational options for the first 65 minutes of the match, with Saul Niguez and later Geoffrey Kondogbia partnering Axel Witsel in a three-man central defence with Marco Moreno. Angel Correa started up front after returning from a period of grief, while Sergio Reguilon and Matt Doherty were given rare opportunities on the flanks.
As per Relevo, neither covered themselves in glory. Reguilon’s delivery was erratic, while the first Besiktas goal came from Doherty’s side. Gedson gave the home team the lead in the 25th minute, before Georges-Kevin Nkoudou sealed the tie in the 87th minute, making it 2-0.
The defet will be of little concern to Simeone, as they prepare for Almeria this weekend, but he will be hoping it does not stall their momentum too. Both sides came out with a banner reading ‘Together for Turkey’, with all of the money raised set to be directed to charities.
