Atletico win, go level on points with La Liga leader Barcelona

By foxsports
Published

Atletico Madrid pulled level on points with Spanish league leader Barcelona after Antoine Griezmann scored a blistering goal to complete a 2-1 fightback against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

Bilbao defender Aymeric Laporte scored from a corner kick to put the visitors ahead in the 26th minute, only for Saul Niguez to equalize from another corner just before halftime.

With Bilbao dictating the flow of play and coach Diego Simeone calling for home fans to rally his side, Griezmann unleashed a long shot that went into the corner of the net for the 67th-minute winner.

The forward rushed to embrace Simeone on the sidelines where they celebrated the goal that left Atletico level on 35 points with defending champion Barcelona.

Atletico, the 2014 champion, extended its winning streak to eight games across all competitions as it capitalized on back-to-back draws in the league by Barcelona following its 2-2 stalemate with Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday.

Third-place Real Madrid trails both pacesetters by five points before it visits Villarreal later.

With Jackson Martinez injured and Fernando Torres struggling to score, Griezmann continued to fuel Atletico's attack with his team-high eighth goal in the league to go with four more in the Champions League.

Bilbao was close to restoring its lead early in the second half, but goalkeeper Jan Oblak denied striker Aritz Aduriz for a second time and turned back Eneko Boveda's effort.

That was when Griezmann was quick to let fly a left-footed strike that sailed beyond the reach of goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz after the ball fell to him when Angel Correa pressured Bilbao's Mikel Rico into losing possession.

"Griezmann is a one-of-a-kind player," said Niguez. "When he touches the ball it is going in because he has a great touch."

Earlier, Valencia remained winless in its second match since Gary Neville took over as coach after needing an own goal to salvage a 1-1 draw at Eibar.

Goalkeeper Jaume Domenech helped spare Valencia a defeat by making a spectacular save to deny Sergi Enrich early, but couldn't stop the forward from scoring right before halftime.

Valencia's Lucas Orban earned a direct red card following a clash with Dani Garcia in the area in the 63rd. Domenech blocked Saul Berjon's resulting penalty kick, giving his team a chance to secure a point when Eibar's David Junca turned the ball into his team's net with five minutes left.

Eibar's Ivan Ramis also saw red in stoppage time for fouling Paco Alcacer with only the `keeper to beat.

Valencia lost 2-0 to Lyon to bow out of the Champions League on Wednesday in Neville's first match.

Elswhere on Sunday, Malaga got its first away win of the season, a 2-1 victory at Rayo Vallecano thanks to Duje Cop's winning goal with three minutes remaining.