Yannick Carrasco’s late penalty miss in a 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday led to Los Colchoneros’ earliest exit from Europe’s premier cup competition since 2010. Diego Simeone was looking to relieve speculation about his future against a Cádiz side who sat 19th, having scored a league-low five La Liga goals so far this season.
The sea of yellow in the stands at the Nuevo Mirandilla were delighted to see their team strike inside what was an unbelievable opening 27 seconds. Atlético may still have been thinking about their midweek disappointment when they allowed a marauding Alfonso Espino to cut back to Théo Bongonda, whose first-time strike into the bottom-left corner was his first goal on the south coast. Rodrigo De Paul did his best to inspire Los Colchoneros to a response, but Los Piratas remained resolute for the rest of the first half, with Atlético’s forwards barely troubling Jeremías Ledesma in goal. Despite the pressure, perhaps the best chance of the half fell once again to the home side, with Rubén Sobrino going one-on-one with Jan Oblak, but he was unable to slot under the Slovenian.
It was a slow start to the second half from Simeone’s side, but Ángel Correa was brilliantly denied by a Ledesma reflex stop just before the hour. The introduction of Antoine Griezmann and João Félix for the final 30 minutes promised a change in Atléti’s fortunes, but Cádiz kept possession well and shut out their opponents before Álex Fernández doubled their lead, poking in off the bar with under 10 minutes left on the clock. However, the visitors made it interesting when Félix’s acrobatic attempt from a corner found the net soon after. The substitute went one better just four minutes later, equalising with a thundering shot just inside the post to double his tally and seemingly complete a thrilling late comeback. The home side had other plans, when Sobrino was found unmarked in the box in the ninth minute of stoppage time and the ball bounced off him and past Oblak.
The surprise triumph for Sergio’s side is not enough for them to ascend out of the bottom three for now, but the three points and confidence gained here could be vital come the end of the season, and ensure their manager’s tenure lasts until the FIFA World Cup break. Simeone, meanwhile, is under big pressure with his side out of the UCL and failing to make up ground on the top two in La Liga.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Alfonso Espino (Cádiz)
