Atletico Madrid vs. Rayo Vallecano: Winners and Losers from La Liga
Super sub Antoine Griezmann scored with his second touch after coming on as a substitute as Atletico Madrid beat Rayo Vallecano 1-0 at the Vicente Calderon on Saturday.
The visitors had the better of the first half but ended up with nothing as Atletico's changes turned things around in the second.
Diego Simeone, who was banned for the game, took home the three points and kept Atletico's title bid alive and kicking.
Here are the winners and losers.
Winner: Antoine Griezmann
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The French forward came on in the 54th minute, and 35 seconds later, he scored what proved to be the winning goal.
It wasn't quite with his first touch, because he needed one to control it on the edge of the box first, but Griezmann made an immediate impact.
This was his 21st league goal of an exceptional season, although you would have thought with all that practice he could have come up with a better celebration.
Now, if he can repeat the trick against Bayern Munich on Tuesday night in the Champions League, an exceptional season may become an extraordinary one.
Loser: Bebe
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If it wasn't enough that he had a frustrating game where he couldn't drag Rayo Vallecano back level, Bebe also got booked, substituted and fought with his manager too.
When he was taken off after 57 minutes, Bebe confronted his coach on the touchline. Paco Jemez hasn't always seemed best pleased with the midfielder's defensive work rate, and that could have been the case here again.
Bebe has, overall, had a reasonable season with Rayo, establishing himself in the Spanish top flight. But this game will not be one he will look back on fondly.
Winner: Diego Simeone
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Diego Simeone wasn't allowed to coach his team, in theory.
This match was the first of three he is suspended for, having thrown a ball onto the pitch against Malaga in the previous game to try to stop a counter-attack.
Instead, he sat in the presidential box, watching on, with his last action being to name the team for the game, featuring seven changes from the side that lined up against Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
He rested most of his team, ended up with a win that sent Atletico top of La Liga for the time being and is now set up nicely to take on Bayern in midweek.
Furthermore, something sneaky may have been afoot too. Simeone was sitting next to the goalkeeping coach Pablo Vercellone, who was wearing a headset.
In the second half, after his substitution, Gabi shouted orders to his team-mates, also wearing a headset. It is possible that Simeone gave these instructions, although there is no evidence that he did.
But with his team disappointing in the first period, you wouldn't put it past the dark magician...
Loser: Luciano Vietto
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Diego Simeone had frozen Luciano Vietto out to some extent recently, as he had not played for Atletico since March 19.
This was his first game since then, and he started but was unable to impress in the 54 minutes he was given before being replaced.
Vietto has lost his way this season, but the man Atletico signed from Villarreal surely has too much talent not to make it.
However, if he can't adapt to the demands of Cholo's side, it may just have to be elsewhere.
Loser: Paco Jemez
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Paco Jemez has always wanted to do things his way. The Rayo Vallecano manager, on his 150th game in the top flight, has put his stamp on his side.
Unfortunately, it is a side that is still fighting the threat of relegation.
Rayo play good football and have a lot of the ball, but it has to add up to something. Here, they had 62 percent to Atletico's 38.
That's an impressive total away from home against a title contender, but being 16th in the league is not.
The result left them on 35 points, equal with Sporting Gijon, who are 17th. Granada have 34 going into their game against Las Palmas.
These are dangerous times for Jemez and Rayo.
