Julian Alvarez, who coolly slotted home two penalties on the night, now boasts 26 goals in all competitions—14 in La Liga. But according to his coach, there’s still room to grow.
The final stretch of this Spanish football season promises drama, tension, and perhaps a few surprises. One thing is certain: La Liga is set for a thrilling conclusion.
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone was delighted with his team's fighting spirit as they clawed back from two goals down to get a last-gasp 4-4 draw at Barcelona in an action-packed first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final on Tuesday.
Luka Modric scored a brilliant goal from long range to help Real Madrid secure a 2-0 win against Girona on Sunday which took them back level with Barcelona at the top of La Liga.
Champions League holders Real Madrid will play local rivals Atletico Madrid in the last 16 of the competition Liverpool will take on Paris Saint-Germain after the teams were paired together in Friday's draw.
The last-gasp victory sends Atletico third in the Champions League table, with the top eight sides all avoiding an extra knockout round.
Diego Simeone's side climbed one point clear of champions Real Madrid and six ahead of third-placed Barcelona at the halfway mark in the Spanish league season.
Last season, around this time, there was a surprise package in Girona in the top three of LaLiga. However, a year later, the Spanish league has returned to the status quo, with Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid -- the three giants of Spain -- occupying the top three spots on the table at the end of 2024.
Barca have now gone three games without a LaLiga win having picked up five points out of a possible 21, suffering defeats by Leganes and Las Palmas in their previous two home games. They are three points behind Atletico having played a game more.
Atletico Madrid took a huge advantage in their heavyweight Champions League last-16 tie with Juventus, earning a 2-0 home win thanks to late goals from Uruguayan defenders Jose Gimenez and Diego Godin in a tense, incident-packed game on Wednesday.
Virgiliu Postolachi's injury-time strike hands Thomas Tuchel his first win as Paris Saint-Germain coach after a pulsating 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid on Monday.
French striker Antoine Griezmann hits a hat-trick as Atletico Madrid thrash Sevilla 5-2 to cut the gap on La Liga leaders Barcelona back to seven points.
Sergio Escudero's goal after just 24 seconds set Sevilla on their way to a 3-1 win over Atletico Madrid and a place in the Spanish Copa del Rey semi-finals.
Atletico Madrid book their place in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey after seeing off third-tier Lleida, while new signing Luciano Vietto's hat-trick fires Valencia past Las Palmas.
Atletico Madrid leapfrog Valencia into second in La Liga thanks to Fernando Torres's first goal at the Wanda Metropolitano to edge out Alaves 1-0.
Real Madrid fail to take advantage of La Liga leaders' Barcelona's 2-2 draw with Celta Vigo as they are held to a goalless draw at Athletic Bilbao, while Atletico Madrid profit by beating Real Sociedad 2-1.
Real Madrid and Atletico each slip 10 points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona after an intense Madrid derby finishes goalless and the Catalans picked up an 11th victory in 12 games by winning 3-0 at Leganes.
Accustomed to unrelenting success in recent seasons, both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid enter Saturday's first ever Spanish capital derby at Atletico's new Wanda Metropolitano stadium with little room for error.
Diego Simeone defends Atletico Madrid's style as another profligate performance left his side on the brink of an early Champions League exit after being held 1-1 at home by 10-man Qarabag.
