Athletic Bilbao vs. Atletico Madrid: Winners and Losers from Liga Game
Atletico Madrid completed a stunning comeback on Sunday evening, reversing a 1-0 scoreline at half-time to defeat Athletic Bilbao 4-1 at the San Mames Stadium in La Liga.
Swamped by an inspired home side in the opening half, Diego Simeone's men quickly found themselves behind when Mikel Rico headed home Markel Susaeta's free-kick in the 17th minute.
But the Spanish champions conjured a strong response after the break, seeing Antoine Griezmann head home the equaliser from Juanfran's cross just a minute after the interval.
Less than 10 minutes later, Raul Garcia put the visitors in front with a well-taken penalty after a controversial decision against Mikel San Jose from referee Alejandro Hernandez.
The capital club then secured the result when Griezmann broke behind Athletic's defence to seize on Gabi's long ball and blast home a third, before the Frenchman registered a hat-trick in the dying minutes to deliver an emphatic victory for Atleti.
Across the following slides, we examine the winners and losers from Sunday's clash.
Winner: Diego Simeone's Half-Time Talk
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Atletico Madrid were uncharacteristically listless in the opening half against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
At the back they looked strangely shaky. In midfield they exerted little control. And up front they were directionless.
In the second half, it couldn't have been a more contrasting story for the visitors.
Within seconds of the second half starting, Diego Simeone's side were ferocious and unrelentingly. The ball zipped around the pitch, tackles were strong, the team's press was intense and the forwards enjoyed some high-quality service.
Whatever Simeone said at half-time worked.
Loser: Referee Alejandro Hernandez
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In what was such a feisty clash, there's a natural reluctance to criticise the game's referee.
It was a heated affair. A physical one. A match littered with collisions, strong challenges and moments of bubbling tension that make the job of the officials incredibly difficult.
But it can't be ignored that referee Alejandro Hernandez (image above not from Sunday's match) got it wrong when awarding a penalty to Atletico Madrid early in the second half after Tiago went to ground in the penalty area when contesting a loose ball with Mikel San Jose.
Both men were intent on winning the ball and had eyes only for it. But the Atletico midfielder started going to ground as the pair came together, seeing the Portuguese fall theatrically over the leg of his Basque counterpart and win a match-changing penalty that was harsh on the hosts.
Winner: Jose Gimenez
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Seriously, how good is this kid?
At 19 years of age (yes, that's right, he was born in 1995!), Jose Gimenez is already a truly outstanding central defender in one of the world's most demanding leagues.
At San Mames Stadium on Sunday night, the Uruguayan was a rock at the back for the visitors, playing a key role in ensuring Atletico Madrid went into the break only one goal down with countless important interventions.
According to WhoScored.com, Gimenez finished the night with 11 clearances, six tackles, five interceptions and three victorious aerial duels in yet another commanding performance of maturity that defied his tender age.
Looking on from the sideline, Miranda might find reclaiming his place in the side extremely difficult.
Loser: Athletic Bilbao's Press
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One of the intriguing storylines coming into this clash was the similarity in styles of the respective teams. Just like Atletico Madrid, Athletic Bilbao prefer to utilise a high-energy press to win the territory battle and suffocate their opponents.
In the first half, the hosts' system was extremely effective and denied the visitors any time and space on the ball.
But after the break it all fell apart for Ernesto Valverde's team.
Without pressure on the ball-carrier, Atletico's midfield was afforded the breathing room to thread balls into the space behind the home side's high defensive line—something that saw Antoine Griezmann punish Athletic Bilbao in the second half.
First it was Juanfran delivering the key pass. Then it was Gabi. And then it was Arda Turan.
On each occasion, Athletic Bilbao's high line was left scrambling by the ease with which Atletico's midfielders were able to pick their pass through the defence.
Winner: The Neutral Viewer
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One of the stereotypes that surrounds La Liga is that its a league of fine technicians, precise passing, patient buildups and nonconfrontational affairs.
So if Sunday evening's clash between Athletic Bilbao and Atletico Madrid was anything, it was an antidote to the stereotype.
For this match was a high-octane affair from start to finish; an end-to-end game that had that frenetic, Premier League feel to it with physical duels all over the pitch.
Barely a minute went by without a strong challenge, a rash foul or a hurried move forward, meaning it was one of the finest spectacles La Liga has put forward for the neutral viewer all season.
Loser: Raul Garcia
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It might seem a little ridiculous to identify a player who finished the game with a goal and an assist as a loser on the evening. But paradoxically, that's what the case is for Raul Garcia.
In general play, the Spaniard had little involvement as Atletico Madrid's secondary forward next to Antoine Griezmann, with both his goal and assist rather fortunate occurrences.
As such, Garcia's overall performance was underwhelming—a theme that's carried through Atletico's recent string of matches.
Given that Mario Mandzukic will return from suspension in the new year, and Antoine Griezmann—thanks to his excellence on the night—will be impossible to drop for Diego Simeone, it's likely that Garcia will be the one who makes way when Atletico return in 2015 against Levante.
Winner: Antoine Griezmann
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In the lead-up to Sunday evening's clash with Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone expressed his confidence in Griezmann as he prepared to replace the suspended Mario Mandzukic.
"Griezmann is the finished product as a player, and we need to exploit his velocity tomorrow," Simeone said in his pre-match press conference, per Heath Chesters of Inside Spanish Football.
Twenty-four hours later Griezmann had an explosive hat-trick.
Exploit his velocity they did.
In his finest performance in an Atletico shirt, the Frenchman secured a vitally important three points for the defending champions, pulling the visitors back level immediately after the break (a header from Juanfran's cross) before scoring the third and fourth goals (the first a stunning goal on the break; the second a simple tap-in) to seal the result.
