Atletico’s troubles in Valencia: Bardhi’s last minute penalty takes the victory from the Madridians

This is not Atletico Madrid which leave the impression that they could defend the title of champion of Spain. When you wear that ‘scarlet letter’ of the trophy defender, matches against teams like Levante should be a routine. For Atletico, the visit to Valencia was nothing but torture… With a disappointing outcome.When Mateus Cunha scored for the second lead fifteen minutes before the end, it seemed that three points would be collected in a classic Diego Simeone style. The reality was completely different. Enis Bardhi scored his second penalty of the match, and the guests did not manage to create a fair chance to win in the next eight minutes of added time – final score 2-2.The first goal of Antoine Griezmann in Primera since his return to Wanda Metropolitano was in vain, the debut goal of 35 million USD paid Brazilian Mateus Cunha was also in vain. Atletico must come to terms with not beating a team that has not won a single game in 11 games since the start of the season in Primera! And they could have easily equalized their point tally with Real Madrid, Sevilla and Betis, teams that share the second position – that is, to get near Real Sociedad three points behind, with a game less.Simeone’s team opened the game very well and after the 12th minute, they had the lead thanks to Griezmann, who snuck into the home team’s goal box. But it is Atletico, a team that will rarely ride on the wave of good energy created by the goal scored. In this case, the opponent was able to take advantage of such an approach, although the penalty that Levante were awarded in the 36th minute after Luis Suarez fell on the back of Ruben Ves, was suspicious to say the least. Enis Bardhi sent the ball to the right while Jan Oblak went in the opposite direction.The second half started, and a few minutes before Cholo Simeone started refreshing the squad, the referee Fuertes showed him a yellow card due to protest. In the period from the 59th to the 72nd minute, the Argentine made four changes – one was top notch because Mateus Cunha scored for the new lead of Atletico after only four minutes on the pitch (in the 76th minute). However, introducing Renan Lodi to the pitch turned out to be a fiasco. Cholo, meanwhile, continued to rage at the side line, which is why he eventually got sent off, and Lodi was in the center of attention in the 90th minute when the ball hit him in the arm. This time, Fuertes watched the video and pointed to the penalty spot again.Oblak failed to anticipate Bardhi’s intention for the second time, so the Macedonian became only the seventh man in the history of the Primera who scored two goals from the penalty spot in the same match against Atletico. The list includes Alfredo di Stefano, Gaizka Mendieta, Alvaro Negredo and Cristiano Ronaldo, among others. The guests did not manage to use the eight-minute stoppage time period for a bigger chance, let alone a goal. At the same time, it seemed that Levante were more dangerous and closer to victory.The absences of Marcos Llorente, Stefan Savic, Thomas Lemar should not be used as an alibi And what about the performance of Joao Felix, by far the most expensive signing in the history of the club from the Spanish capital. Young Portuguese forward, including the end of last season, failed to score for the 14th time in a row in La Liga.LA LIGA – Round 11TuesdayAlaves – Elche 1-0 (0-0)/Loum 47/Espanyol – Athletic Bilbao 1-1 (1-0)/De Tomas 33 pen – Williams 52/Villareal – Cadiz 3-3 (1-2)/Torres 43, Dia 80, Groeneveld 90 – Lozano 14, 45, 52/WednesdayRayo Vallecano – Barcelona 1-0 (1-0)/Falcao 30/Mallorca – Sevilla 1-1 (1-0)/Sanchez 22 – Lamela 73/Real Betis – Valencia 4-1 (2-1)/Iglesias 14 pen, 30, Pezzella 61, Juanmi 68 – Gabriel 39/Real Madrid – Osasuna 0-0ThursdayCelta – Sociedad 0-2 (0-0)/Isak 54, Elustondo 79/Granada – Getafe 1-1 (0-1)/Molina 90+7 – Unal 36/Levante – Atl.Madrid 2-2 (1-1)/Bardhi 37 pen, 90 pen – Griezmann 12, Cunha 76/

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