Atletico Madrid have just about kept themselves in the La Liga title race, having defeated Rayo Vallecano 2-1 in the derby clash at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Diego Simeone made several changes to his side from the victory over Valencia, with the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Rodrigo De Paul and Alvaro Morata only on the bench. Still, they had enough to open the scoring, with Reinildo Mandava heading home his first goal for the club from an excellent Rodrigo Riquelme cross.
However, only a few minutes later, Rayo were level in fine style. Alvaro Garcia received the ball on the edge of the Atleti box, and his strike into the far corner left Jan Oblak with no chance whatsoever.
With the scores still level in the second half, Simeone turned to Griezmann, De Paul and Lino to turn things their way, and that’s exactly what happened. Just 10 minutes after having a goal disallowed by VAR, Memphis Depay scored the winner from a Griezmann cross, sparking wild scenes among the home support.
The result sees Atletico Madrid go back into third place, ahead of Barcelona on goal difference. Rayo Vallecano stay in 13th place.
