After losing to Barcelona 1-0 in the league in January 2023, Atletico has gone 25 games in a row in all competitions at the Metropolitano Stadium without a loss, with two draws in between.
This time, Atletico Madrid prevailed against Real Madrid, defeating the rival team 4-2 in overtime on Thursday to advance to the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.
Much less than a week after losing to Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup semifinals in Saudi Arabia, Atletico advanced to the round of eight thanks to goals from Antoine Griezmann and Rodrigo Riquelme following a 2-2 draw in regulation.
Atletico flourished once again at home, defeating Madrid in September’s inaugural Spanish league rivalry to record its rival’s sole defeat of the year. After losing to Barcelona 1-0 in the league in January 2023, Atletico has gone 25 games without a loss in all competitions at its Metropolitano stadium. Since then, the team has only drawn twice.
Last season, defending champion Madrid defeated Atletico 3-1 at home in overtime to go to the Copa quarterfinals. On February 4, the city rivals will be facing off once more in the Spanish league at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. This will be their third encounter in less than a month. Last Wednesday, in the Super Cup semifinals, Madrid prevailed 5-3 after extra time.
Griezmann ran down the right side of the area and scored a stunning goal to seal Atletico’s victory this time. After edging past Madrid striker Vinícius Júnior, the France international—who now holds the record for most goals scored at Atletico—found the top corner from an acute angle.
In the 39th minute, Madrid defender Antonio Rüdiger deflected the ball backwards into the box, setting up Atletico for a goal from close range by Samuel Lino. When Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak attempted to clear a cross and slammed the ball into his own net, it was a rare error that allowed Madrid to tie the score.
In the 57th minute, Álvaro Morata gave Atletico Madrid another lead from a short distance after Madrid goalie Andriy Lunin was unable to completely clear a cross. After bouncing off Rüdiger, the ball moved in Morata’s direction towards an open net.
After substituting for Rodrygo in the 80th minute, striker Joselu equalized with a header in the 82nd following a cross from Jude Bellingham. Just seconds before, Morata had wasted a clear opportunity to go one-on-one with Lunin.
In the very first half, Bellingham smacked the crossbar, and in the second, Rodrygo struck the woodwork.
Madrid defeated Barcelona 4-1 in the Spanish Super Cup final on Sunday, although Atletico did not provide a guard of honor prior to the game at the Metropolitano.
Prior to the match, Ancelotti’s Madrid had won 17 of their previous 21 games in every competition, with 4 draws.
