Two-minute two-goal blitz sees Atleti past city rivals Rayo

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Two-minute two-goal blitz sees Atleti past city rivals Rayo
Mario Hermoso rises highest to head in Atleti's second goal of the game
Mario Hermoso rises highest to head in Atleti's second goal of the game
AFP
Atletico Madrid cruised to a 2-1 victory over city rivals Rayo Vallecano. Two goals in two first-half minutes were enough to extend Atleti’s unbeaten run in LaLiga to 12 games, whilst also leaving Rayo winless in eight.

The two Madrid outfits got off to a sluggish start, with neither side able to fashion a chance in the opening moments.

That was soon to change though as the game suddenly sprung to life midway through the half as Atletico scored twice in two minutes.

The first arrived from a swift counter attack that saw Antoine Griezmann carry the ball up the pitch, and the move was finished off by Nahuel Molina coolly slotting past Stole Dimitrievski.

The visitors’ lead was doubled after Yannick Carrasco’s whipped corner was powered home by Mario Hermoso, leaving Rayo shocked, having kept their opponents largely at bay prior to that two-minute spell.

The home side struggled to recover from the two-goal sucker-punch and rather laboured their way towards the interval, struggling to create anything in response, and Diego Simeone’s men happily sat back with their advantage going into the break.

Rayo came out a much-improved side in the second half and threatened Jan Oblak’s goal in the early stages - Isi Palazon coming closest with a drilled shot from distance that flew inches wide. However, despite their bright start, they were dealt a major blow on the hour mark as they were reduced to 10 men.

Florian Lejeune was initially shown a yellow card for bringing Alvaro Morata down when through on goal, yet after a VAR review, and rewatching the incident on the pitch-side monitor, the Frenchman was instead sent off.

Morata should have put the game out of sight with a third goal after a fast break, but the Spaniard dragged his effort wide despite having time and space in the box.

The hosts pushed forward to try and pull a goal back, but with the one-man disadvantage, they were left vulnerable to the counterattack every time.

Atleti failed to capitalise on their numerical superiority and were instead forced to shut up shop in the final moments after Fran Garcia had stunned Oblak with a driven shot from distance, setting up a grandstand finish with five minutes remaining.

Ultimately, the goal served as a warning to the Atleti players as they successfully defended the final moments to confirm victory, and firm their grip on third place, while Rayo Vallecano find themselves midtable.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid)

See stats and player ratings from the match at Flashscore

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