Espanyol 1-1 Atlético Madrid: Puado penalty cancels out Azpilicueta stunner

Espanyol and Atlético Madrid played out a hard-fought 1-1 draw at the RCDE Stadium in LaLiga, with both sides sharing the spoils in front of 30,559 fans. César Azpilicueta’s first-half strike gave Atléti the lead, but Javi Puado’s penalty in the 71st minute ensured Espanyol earned a point.

Diego Simeone’s side controlled large spells of the game but were left to rue their inability to convert early dominance into a bigger lead. Espanyol, under Manolo González, grew into the match and capitalised on a defensive error to secure a draw, keeping their mid-table position intact.

As it happened

Atlético Madrid started brightly, and their early pressure paid off in the 38th minute. A well-worked move saw Azpilicueta fire a right-footed shot from outside the box into the top left corner, giving the visitors a deserved 1-0 lead. 

Espanyol struggled to create clear chances in the first half, with their best effort coming just before the break, when Puado’s shot from distance was blocked. Los Colchoneros, meanwhile, saw Antoine Griezmann and Marcos Llorente both have efforts blocked as they pushed for a second. The first half ended with Atlético leading 1-0 after four minutes of added time.

The second half saw Espanyol’s persistence pay off in the 69th minute, when Leandro Cabrera was fouled in the penalty area by Clément Lenglet. Puado stepped up and converted the penalty with a right-footed shot into the top right corner, levelling the score at 1-1. 

The final stages saw both teams push for a winner. Griezmann had a shot from outside the box saved by Joan García in the 82nd minute, while Espanyol’s Edu Expósito fired over from distance. Tensions rose in stoppage time, when José María Giménez received a yellow card for a late foul on Expósito, but neither side could find a breakthrough.

The match ended 1-1 after four minutes of added time, with both teams settling for a point. The result means Atlético Madrid missed the chance to close the gap on the top two, while Espanyol gained a valuable point in their battle to climb the table.

The lineups

ESP: García; El Hilali, Kumbulla, Cabrera, Romero; González, Král, Lozano; Carreras, Puado; Fernández.

ATM: Oblak; Azpilicueta, Le Normand, Lenglet; Llorente, Barrios, Gallagher, Lino; Simeone, Griezmann; Sørloth.