Atletico Madrid vs. Villarreal: Winners and Losers from La Liga
Atletico Madrid had to settle for a point on Sunday, fighting out a 0-0 draw against Villarreal in La Liga action at the Vicente Calderon.
Chances were at a premium as the two meanest defences in the Spanish top flight stood firm.
The point took Atletico back above city rivals Real Madrid—who drew 1-1 away at Malaga on Sunday—into second place in the table, although they now sit eight back of leaders Barcelona.
As for fourth-placed Villarreal, they have now kept clean sheets in five successive games in all competitions.
Here Bleacher Report has picked out the winners and losers from this Primera Division clash in the Spanish capital.
Winner: Alphonse Areola
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Goalkeeper Alphonse Areola had a relatively comfortable night in Villarreal's net.
The Frenchman—who is on loan at the club from Paris Saint-Germain—did have to tip over a chip from Angel Correa in the second half, as well as deal with a number of crosses.
The clean sheet means Areola has not conceded a goal in any competition since his side's 2-2 draw away at Espanyol on Jan. 23.
Such a tight defence has underpinned the Yellow Submarine's push for Champions League qualification. They are ensconced in fourth place in the standings, a comfortable eight points clear of nearest rivals Sevilla.
Loser: Antoine Griezmann
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Antoine Griezmann fluffed his lines when presented with the best chance of a contest that saw both defences on top.
The Frenchman was gifted the opportunity to break the deadlock in the first half from Juanfran's teasing right-wing cross, but he wasn't able to get enough on his header to steer it on target.
His struggles against Sunday's opponents are nothing new. According to OptaJose on Twitter: "Antoine Griezmann has played more games (10) without scoring against Villarreal than against any other side in La Liga."
Griezmann was taken off after 62 minutes, although there are two plus points to his early withdrawal.
The forward avoided picking up a booking that would have ruled him out of the Madrid derby on Feb. 27, and he should also be fresh for Atletico's UEFA Champions League tie against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday.
Winner: Filipe Luis
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Filipe Luis may be a defender, but he did his best to get Atletico Madrid moving forward in attack.
Per WhoScored.com, the former Chelsea left-back made a game-high five dribbles during the 90 minutes, and he also won more tackles (five) than any other player on the field.
The Brazilian—who is in his second spell with Atletico—only blotted his copybook by picking up a booking for a block on Villarreal's Antonio Rukavina.
Loser: Luciano Vietto
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Luciano Vietto was outstanding in the 2014-15 season for Villarreal, scoring 18 goals in all competitions.
His performances led to a summer move to Atletico Madrid, but the switch to the Spanish capital hasn't quite gone according to plan for the young forward.
Vietto has found the net just three times since his arrival in the capital, with his only league goal coming in the 1-1 draw against rivals Real Madrid in Oct. 2015.
After being introduced as a second-half substitute, the 22-year-old had a late opportunity to be a hero against his old employers.
However, when presented with a shooting chance on the left side of the area in the closing minutes, he took one touch too many and saw his eventual effort blocked by a defender.
Winner: Marcelino Garcia Toral
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If Diego Simeone leaves Atletico Madrid at the end of the season, Marcelino Garcia Toral could be a strong candidate to take over at the Vicente Calderon.
Bleacher Report's own Karl Matchett suggested the Villarreal boss could succeed Simeone, who is Chelsea's No. 1 target, according to Tom Hopkinson of the Sunday People (h/t the Mirror).
It is clear to see why Marcelino might fit in at Atletico considering his desire to build a team around a solid defence.
Only Los Rojiblancos (11) have conceded fewer goals in Spain's top flight than the 18 the Yellow Submarines have given up through 25 games.
Loser: Diego Simeone
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Prior to the game against Villarreal, Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone insisted he did not have one eye on bigger dates to come on the calendar.
He said in his pre-match press conference, per Football Espana: "There’s nothing more important than the next game, so we must play with the best team at our disposal."
However, with a midweek UEFA Champions League tie against PSV Eindhoven to come, followed by a massive Madrid derby on Feb. 27, Simeone certainly seemed to be thinking ahead during the game on Sunday.
Despite the score being 0-0 at the time, he withdrew leading scorer Antoine Griezmann from the field just after the hour.
Still, while there were no goals for the Argentinian manager to celebrate, he did reach a personal milestone. Per Sky Sports Statto on Twitter, Atletico kept their 100th clean sheet in 194 Spanish domestic league and cup games during his reign.
