Report: Atleti stumble at home in opener against Elche | OneFootball

Another setback for Atlético, this time at home against Elche, despite taking an early lead in their home debut in La Liga. However, a lack of precision hindered their chances of securing the first victory of the season.

In the first half, Atleti knew they were under scrutiny. Not only on a general level but also several of our players individually. Especially in the case of Alexander Sorloth, who, after not being the first choice in attack in the changes made against Espanyol, and with Alex Baena out, had the opportunity to prove himself at the Metropolitano as the pure number nine that Atleti needs this season.

And the start couldn't have been better. It only took seven minutes for him to connect with David Hancko, who delivered a spectacular pass that the Norwegian took advantage of to make it clear it would be a great night for the Atleti striker.

A great start that turned a bit gray, precisely seven minutes later, when he had a very similar opportunity, thanks to an excellent pass from Thiago Almada, which he couldn't capitalize on in the same way as his first shot on goal. If Matias Dituro hadn't closed the door on him before, this time he became a giant and conceded a corner that would be a poisonous gift for the colchoneros.

A poor execution on the corner, which went too far to the second post, led to a blistering counterattack by the ilicitanos, ending with a shot by Rafa Mir, resulting in Elche's equalizer, thanks to an assist from Germán Valera, leaving Mir with the opportunity to beat Jan Oblak from the edge of the box.

From there, Thiago Almada emerged as the best creator of chances for his teammates, with Atleti creating several opportunities to score the second goal, but without finishing any of the chances (including a shot to the base of the post by Giuliano Simeone).

Neither the lateral crosses from the rojiblanco attackers nor the corner kicks executed by Almada, who took over set-piece duties in Baena's absence, were fully exploited. They almost always went too far or too centered for easy control by Matias Dituro.

In short, few clear chances in front of the goalkeeper, nor any headers from Sorloth, which remains one of the team's great assets when the Norwegian is on the pitch.

One of the best aspects of the first half was how much and well Hancko performed both in defense and attack, daring to launch offensively, driving the ball, and filtering passes, as well as making runs for headers.

Control without a goal in the second half

The start of the second half meant better pressure from Atleti on Elche's ball exit, which didn't generate any attacking options or counterattacks. This created an initial phase of pressure from Atleti on the visitor's goal, creating opportunities like one from Sorloth, who delayed his shot and thus missed the goal chance in the 57th minute.

Chances kept coming, and a goal seemed imminent for Atleti. A header from Hancko, a shot from the edge by Barrios, and more pressure on Elche's goal, with half an hour remaining.

Then came the 66th minute, with a triple change, bringing on Gallagher, Griezmann, and Raspadori, and immediately some improvements were noticeable, such as better corner kicks from Raspadori and a Griezmann willing to shoot from the edge.

But the pressure after pressing disappeared, and we moved to a phase of control by Atleti against a very closed Elche, causing the game to slow down a lot, with Cholo's team trying to move the ball and find gaps. Cholo sought a change of full-backs with Galán and Molina, replacing Ruggeri and Giuliano, seeking more depth and mobility with the ball.

And at times, the pressure on the rival goal returned, with an opportunity from Gallagher, who saw the Elche goalkeeper off his line, and another from Llorente, in a one-on-one chance after a brilliant pass from Barrios, with Hancko being important again in the offensive phase.

But in the end, none of the opportunities managed to elicit an almost-goal shout from the fans at the Metropolitano, despite a controversial play at the end with a hold on Raspadori in the area and a subsequent tackle on Gallagher (in the same play), with nothing being called.

Better attacking production when neither Almada nor Cardoso were on the pitch, compared to what was seen in the first matchday, but a very discreet game from the spider, a lack of decisiveness from our players, and another setback in a somewhat tumultuous start to the league this season.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.