Villarreal 2-2 Atletico Madrid: Simeone´s men fight back for draw

Atletico Madrid twice fought back from behind to earn a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw with Villarreal in their LaLiga season opener on Monday.

Forward Arnaut Danjuma gave the hosts an 18th-minute lead but Atletico hit back within two minutes as Marcos Llorente capped a lightning counterattack.

Diego Simeone’s team fell behind for the second time when Jan Oblak failed to claim a deep cross in the 37th minute, with the ball deflecting off the back of captain Koke and into the net.

But forward Alexander Sorloth, making his Atletico debut following an outstanding 2023-24 season with Villarreal, came back to haunt the Yellow Submarine with a second equaliser.

Sorloth, who finished one goal shy of LaLiga’s Golden Boot winner Artem Dovbyk last term, scored with a towering header six minutes into first-half stoppage time, with a quieter second half passing without further incident.

Data Debrief: Sorloth stands alone

Despite a trip to his former club representing a tricky first Atleti outing for Sorloth, he picked up where he left off in a brilliant 2023-24 campaign.

His goal was his 18th in LaLiga in 2024, more than any other player has scored in one of Europe’s top five leagues, with Jonathan David and Harry Kane in joint-second with 15 apiece.

18 – @atletienglish striker Alexander Sørloth