Antoine Griezmann's Late Winning Goal Can Kickstart His Atletico Madrid Season
Atletico Madrid moved back into the top three of La Liga with a late, late winner against Sporting Gijon on Sunday, with Antoine Griezmann hitting the only goal of the game in the third minute of stoppage time.
It was a match which Atleti dominated without really creating enough clear goalscoring chances; to an extent, the 90 minutes mirrored Sporting's opening game of the season in which they frustrated the other capital club, Real Madrid, though on that occasion, they did hold out for the 0-0 draw.
Atleti's perseverance in the end proved too much and Griezmann will be hoping that his late impact can spark him and the team into a good run of form, after what has been a slightly disappointing recent streak.
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Current Run
Griezmann had been on an eight-game run scoring just a single goal in that time for Atletico recently, a mixture of not quite clicking with his strike partner and Atleti not having enough creativity from midfield.
Even so, the late header was the French forward's seventh of the season, and he is comfortably the biggest goal threat Atleti possess once again.
The upcoming run of fixtures Atleti face should, though, provide further chances for Griezmann to add to his tally and the team to pick up points consistently.
Having come through a tough start to the year on the fixture list, the next month looks far more handy: Real Betis, Galatasaray (Champions League), Espanyol, Reus (Copa del Rey), Granada.
Atletico will want their No. 7 in top form, and the confidence gained from his late goal can only help in that regard.
Simeone
Manager Diego Simeone has consistently enjoyed success with Atletico Madrid because of the team spirit and determination he has fostered, a self-belief within the side that they can work harder and last longer than their rivals.
Per AS, that's exactly the reason they won this time, according to the boss, who said, "Insistence is the word which defined the game, an extremely tough match, one which was played very well by our rivals, who gave us complications; but we didn’t stop insisting and played well ourselves for moments.... We won because we insisted."
Diego Godin echoed those thoughts on Canal Plus Liga after the game (h/t AS): "We suffered because that’s what Atleti are about, but we never give in, we never lose hope."
Even so, the fans this time were on the verge of huge frustration; after conceding the lead and drawing against Deportivo La Coruna last week and failing to break down Astana in the Champions League, a third successive draw—this time against newly promoted opposition—would have been tough to take.
They whistled and jeered the late substitution which saw Yannick Carrasco leave the field and Simeone later admitted he was close to taking off Greizmann—but left him on because "there’s always a chance that Griezmann will score."
The manager's gamble paid off on that occasion in the end, but the fans will demand more from this side in an offensive sense in upcoming games.
Griezmann
The French attacker, 24, has most frequently been paired with Jackson Martinez, but the duo have not really linked with each other well this term.
In pre-season, it was Luciano Vietto who looked brightest and most on Griezmann's wavelength, but as soon as competitive action got underway, the former Villarreal man struggled hugely.
Finding a regular partner who can contribute more—or getting much more out of Martinez—is key to increasing the consistency of Griezmann's own output. And it is the France international who remains critical to Atleti's chances of victory, both on a match-to-match basis and in the wider context of league or cup success.
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