Granada 0-1 Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid finally snapped a winless run away from home that spanned multiple months, and a run of four straight defeats when not playing at the Metropolitano, but it was far from comfortable against Granada at Nuevo Los Carmenes.
The first half between the two provided little in the way of real danger, as both sides more or less cancelled each other out, albeit with Granada the happier of the two. Atletico lifted the pace in the second half, and were rewarded a little over 10 minutes later. Antoine Griezmann found Alvaro Morata with a cross from the right, with his weaker right, and their top scorer found the corner with his header. That was awarded after a lengthy VAR review ruling Morata on side. The pair now have 60% of Atletico’s goals in La Liga between them.
🚨🎙️ Diego Simeone: "For me, Pablo Barrios is very important. It will depend on how he matures as a footballer. He's at a point where he needs to stop being a kid. We need to improve, we need better training. I have a lot of confidence in him." pic.twitter.com/G9jYDnPeCx
— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) January 22, 2024
Not long after a similar play took place, with Nahuel Molina this time crossing for an onrushing Saul Niguez, who also headed home. He was adjudged to be offside this time though. The final half hour saw much more of Granada attacking than Atletico. Axel Witsel was forced to clear off the line, and in stoppage time Los Rojiblancos were hanging on. Mario Hermoso also intervened to prevent Los Nazaries from levelling, while a late penalty appeal for a handball from Jose Maria Gimenez caused great controversy.
After the match, Granada goalkeeper Agustin Batalla told the television that ‘everyone saw it, why was it not a penalty?’ His manager Alexander Medina maintains that Morata was offside for his goal, and claimed the penalty ‘could have been given’.
For his part, Diego Simeone told Marca that “I still believe that VAR helps although on some occasions that has not been proven. There is a lot of pressure, you have to show solidarity with the referees because it is not an easy moment for them.”
Their victory moves Atletico back into the top four, taking them level with Athletic Club. Meanwhile Granada’s frustration continues with them five points removed from safety.
