Baena scores twice as a false nine in Atlético's 3-1 win at the Pizjuán

Three goals in 33 minutes, and no number nine

Atlético won 3-1 at the Pizjuán. Baena scored on four minutes, Lookman on 26, Baena again on 33, and it was 0-3 before the interval. Atlético's first-half xG was 0.47 and three goals came out of it. They had 68% of the ball.

Over the full ninety there is not much between the two sides. Sevilla had 20 shots to Atlético's 12 and the xG finished 0.90 to 0.93. The gap opened up in the quality of what hit the target: 0.68 to 1.24 on xGOT.

Three goals away from home, without Sørloth, who is injured, and without Álvarez, who was left out of the squad. In the preview we wrote that nobody would know who was leading the line until kick-off. Three goals went in with that question still unanswered, so on this particular night it did not need an answer.

The number nine spot is open from one week to the next

Baena started as a false nine. Simeone explained it afterwards. "We were fortunate to have about 60 very good minutes. Every transition created a rush of danger. We got ourselves into their half and found players who could break from the second line, because Sørloth and Julián, who normally play in that position, were not with us today. Not having a centre forward does not mean we do not attack."

Baena put it more plainly. "Giuliano, Kang-in, Lookman and I can all play in that position. Today it was my turn." Nobody owns the shirt. With two of the first-choice forwards out at the same time, a different player fills the gap each week, which is why it is hard to tell who the attack is built around.

The papers could not agree on the shape. AS called Baena, Barrios, Lee Kang-in and Hjulmand a magic square. Marca described four attackers with none of them acting as a reference point for the centre-backs. FotMob and ESPN both list a 4-4-2. The clearest description came from the side trying to stop it. "We did not adjust well in the first half and we were punished for it," Luis García Plaza said. "They surprised us with a diamond in midfield and we could not pick Baena up. We adjusted after the drinks break, but then Baena scored a golazo." Sevilla adjusted and it still did not stop.

Lookman is the one the shape freed up. On 26 minutes Barrios came through the middle off a one-two with Lee Kang-in, and Lookman took it on the left of the box and slid it through Juan Iglesias's legs into the near corner. AS wrote that he looks much happier away from the nine, dropping to the left with room to run at people and face defenders instead of having his back to them, and credited him with the knack of finding the near post. Six touches in the Sevilla box. Last week he had one shot worth 0.02 xG.

None of which means this holds. Simeone said the transitions hurt a Sevilla side that came out to press high. A front line with no reference point gets its real test against a team that sits deep.

Baena passed last season's league tally in three games

Last season Baena scored twice and set up three in the league. He started 21 games and put seven of his 29 shots on target. This season he has three goals in three games. His minutes add up to 163, and he is already past his whole league return from last year.

The first goal on Saturday came from Lee Kang-in drifting right and threading it between the lines, with Baena finishing first time from a tight angle. The second, on 33 minutes, was a low strike from outside the box after a short pass from Llorente. AS put it well about last season: he moved, but nobody found him between the lines. Both goals here came from him turning and shooting himself.

Baena and his manager both put the change down to the World Cup. "Winning it lifts anyone's confidence, and I had a good tournament," Baena said. Simeone was more expansive. "The stimulus and the impact that winning the World Cup gave to his heart and his head, and the confidence of a coach who plays him every game, he is giving back to us with his play and his work." He then added the part that matters. "We are going to demand he keeps this level, and that is the hardest thing of all."

What Atlético gave up after the break was territory, not chances

The second half was mostly spent in their own half. Possession dropped from 68% to 45%, and Sevilla's touches in the Atlético box went from five to 23.

Even so, only one of Sevilla's 12 second-half shots hit the target, and by FotMob's count they created no big chances at all. The goal on 66 came from a Suazo cross that Ure could not get on the end of, with Sierra volleying in the loose ball.

The explanations differ. Simeone told Movistar+ that "from about the 20th minute of the second half we were running out of energy, and Sevilla's push meant we could not create chances." Note that he limited his own praise to "about 60 minutes". Into the Calderón was harder on the team, writing that Atlético slowed their attacks and retreated into the usual defensive shell, and paid for it. Luis García Plaza also brought on Kochorashvili and Ejuke together on 55, and Sevilla pushed up more from there. Putting all of that together, my read is that the legs and the mindset went at the same time.

Hancko was steady. Eleven clearances, eight of them headers, and no fouls. He still touched the ball 88 times across the 90 and played nine passes into the final third. It is not eye-catching work, but on a night spent defending like this one, having a player like him decides how many the team ends up conceding.

Grimaldo's defending is the biggest problem right now

The outside verdicts on Grimaldo were harsh across the board. Into the Calderón gave him a 5, pointing to a loose clearance on 22 that let Kike Salas shoot from outside the box, and a careless giveaway before the drinks break that turned into a Sevilla counter. AS called him the weak link at the back for the moment and raised the question of whether Simeone goes to a back five when a top-level winger turns up on that side. Marca wrote that he looked the other way on Sierra's goal.

Left-back is not new to him. It was his position at Benfica from 2016 to 2023. What he did at Leverkusen over three years, though, he did as a left wing-back with three centre-backs behind him: 145 games, 30 goals and more than 40 assists. In his last season there he was also used centrally at times. With three behind, the left-sided centre-back can slide across when he goes forward. A back four has one fewer body to cover, so more of the recovery running falls on him. He had 66 touches on Saturday and produced no chances, one touch in the Sevilla box and no completed crosses.

Making a difference going forward is what he is here for, and on this night none of that arrived while the space behind him did. The attacking side is what I want to see first. Once he starts creating on that flank, the risk behind him becomes easier to live with.

Arnau can now come off the bench

Arnau Ortiz came on for the last 24 minutes and touched the ball only seven times, but one of those was the cross that put Barrios in for a header from close range. Last season he was the leading scorer in the Primera Federación, Spain's third tier, with 23 goals. In the opening game of this season he started and played 57 minutes, creating three chances and completing three crosses. AS wrote that he takes people on, backs himself, and looks to get past his man and stretch the team. His pace and his one-on-one work are holding up against La Liga defenders, and being able to bring him on in the second half is something Atlético did not have last year.

Three games in, that is seven points from two wins and a draw. Athletic away at San Mamés comes on 5 September, and the Champions League league phase opens at Anfield on the 9th. The calendar is fixed as far as that. The three games after it, against Real Sociedad, Osasuna and Real Madrid, do not have confirmed dates yet.

The player sold in July was lining up on Sevilla's left

Julio Díaz started on the Sevilla left. He joined the Atlético academy at 13 from Rayo Vallecano, made his first-team debut against Oviedo on 28 February this year, and moved to Sevilla at the end of July on a contract to 2031. He is 21. He played four La Liga games for Atlético, and the one assist he recorded came at this ground, in a game Atlético lost 2-1. On Saturday he played in an advanced role on the left rather than at left-back, and came off on 55. He kept shouting from the bench after that.

Sold, but not gone for good. According to ElDesmarque, Sevilla bought 50% of his rights for one million euros plus 500,000 in variables, and Atlético kept a buy-back option worth two million. From this side, that is not a bad way to leave it.

Ratings

Starters

Substitutes

ItC ratings via Into the Calderón; FotMob ratings via FotMob.