Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid faced each other at the Civitas Metropolitano on Sunday evening within the eight round of the 2024/25 La Liga campaign. Eder Militao took advantage of a Vinicius Junior cross in the 64th minute to send Real ahead, but Angel Correa, having come off the bench, snatched an equalizer for Atletico five minutes into the second-half stoppage time.
The teams
Both teams were arranged in the 4-4-2 formation, which isn’t surprising for Diego Simeone’s Atletico, but Real boss Carlo Ancelotti likely chose this approach in light of the absence of Kylian Mbappe through injury. However, there were differences in the way their respective midfield sections operated; while Rodrigo De Paul, Marcos Llorente and Conor Gallagher played behind Julian Alvarez for Atletico, Real’s approach appeared far more attack-minded as Aurelien Tchouameni sat deep, with Luka Modric, Fede Valverde and Jude Bellingham operating in more advanced roles.
For Atletico, Jan Oblak was in goal, with the back four consisting of Nahuel Molina, Robin Le Normand, Jose Gimenez and Reinildo Mandava, tasked with trying to stop the onsets of Vinicius and Rodrygo. Real’s back line of Dani Carvajal, Militao, Antonio Rudiger and Ferland Mendy, on the other hand, had to deal with the industriousness of Antoine Griezmann and Alexander Sorloth, with Thibaut Courtois standing between the posts.
A fair result
The contest was an extremely even one. While many will have expected Atletico to mostly defend with grit and determination, the home side actually had slightly more of the ball under their control, 51%. The two teams to a total of 12 shots each, and each hit the target four times. The balance of the match was also notable in the number of fouls committed – 11 each, as well as corners taken – five each.
With that in mind, it’s fair to say that each team got what they deserved, meaning neither deserved to lose. It was a very dynamic match, with the ball moving quickly from one end of the pitch to the other. There was quality from both sides on show, as well as sparks and controversy – inevitable items in derbies as huge as this one.
Controversies
The first significant problem began when referee Mateo Busquets awarded Real a rather questionable free-kick in the middle of the park in the 64th minute. Modric took it quickly and found Vinicius on the left flank. The Brazilian whipped a fine cross into the box and it reached Militao on the far post, in far too much space. Militao, however, reacted well and his shot picked up a deflection, beating Oblak and hitting the back of the net.
The home crowd did not react well to their team going down in such a manner. Objects, mostly lighters, started flying from the stands onto the pitch, aimed probably at Courtios in the Real goal. The Belgian goalkeeper, who spent three whole years at Atletico on loan from Chelsea in the early stages of his career and helped them win the 2014 La Liga title, appeared to have taunting the crowd. Nothing can, of course, justify such behaviour from the fans, but an experienced professional like Courtois should have certainly known better than to provoke the Atletico faithful, already angry about their team conceding a goal in what they obviously didn’t consider a fair deal.
It was hard to restrain the crowd at that point, and even Atletico captain Koke and coach Simeone approached the stand behind Courtois to ask for a ceasefire. Not wanting to risk anything, the referee ordered the players of both teams into their dressing rooms and the break lasted over 15 minutes, during which it was extremely uncertain if it would continue at all.
Still, the tensions gradually defused and the players came back, ready to play on. For the time being, it seems the only consequence of the incident is that one Atletico fan has been permanently banned from the stadium, but it remains to be seen if La Liga takes action against the club as well.
Another moment of controversy happened very late on, even later than Correa’s equalizer. Llorente committed a foul on Real substitute Fran Garcia, prompting the referee to book him at first. However, a call came from the VAR room, sending Busquets to the pitch-side screen. The footage revealed the full severity of Llorente’s tackle as studs hit flesh, and the yellow card was upgraded, arguably rightly, to a straight red.
Table rankings
Though this result won’t be giving Real sleepless nights as they remain in second place, two points ahead of Atletico in third, but given the lateness of the equalizer, they will surely be disappointed not to have taken the whole prize and closed the gap to league leaders Barcelona, especially after the Catalans suffered defeat at the hands of Osasuna previously.
For Atletico, it’s important that they did not allow Real to move five points clear, which would’ve put a great obstacle in their way in the title race. But Barcelona remain three points ahead of Real, and five ahead of Atletico. For the time being, it’s still a three-way competition at the top.
