Atlético Performs the Martínez Era's First Loss (2-0)
Diego Martínez's first defeat as manager of UD Las Palmas came on Sunday, during their visit to Atlético Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium (2-0). Despite battling for nearly 100 minutes, Las Palmas lacked the cutting edge to breach Jan Oblak's defense.
Las Palmas approached the game with a disciplined defensive setup and aimed to maintain possession, attempting to withstand Atlético’s early attacking waves. This defensive approach created a balanced but tense match from the very beginning.
In the opening 10 minutes, Las Palmas endured two scares. First, Pablo Barrios fired a shot from the edge of the box, which Cillessen saved. Moments later, a VAR check was triggered following an accidental handball by Scott McKenna in the box. After review, the referee decided against awarding a penalty, denying Atlético’s claims for a spot-kick.
After weathering the initial pressure, Las Palmas started to push forward. At the 20-minute mark, they crafted a chance when a straightforward build-up led to Fabio Silva testing Oblak with a shot that the keeper managed to stop comfortably.
The match remained finely poised until Atlético broke the deadlock just before halftime. A long ball found Giuliano Simeone, who raced forward and struck a well-placed shot past Cillessen, who had come off his line to close down the angle. This goal gave Atlético the lead, forcing Las Palmas to rethink their strategy during the break.
Just before the whistle for halftime, Las Palmas had another scare when an Antoine Griezmann shot rattled the underside of the crossbar but bounced back into play. The first half ended with Las Palmas trailing narrowly.
The second half started with an early setback for Diego Martínez. Jasper Cillessen had to be substituted by Dinko Horkas after suffering a head injury in a collision with Samuel Lino. Although the Dutch keeper tried to continue, he was eventually stretchered off to applause from the 56,610 spectators.
The remainder of the match saw both teams battle intensely across the pitch without any clear chances. Las Palmas struggled to find an equalizer, and Atlético sealed the victory in the closing minutes. Sorloth broke free on a counter-attack and slotted the ball past Horkas, who had advanced from his goal to challenge.
That second goal put the game to bed, confirming Atlético's victory in the Spanish capital.
