Stuck at 0-0 until the penalty. A 0-3 that flatters the performance

A 0-3 win at Anoeta, with all three goals coming from the 84th minute onwards. On 82 the ball Romero challenged for struck Ochieng's arm, a penalty was given, and Grimaldo scored it for the opener. On 90 Jonathan David slotted in left-footed at the end of a counter carried by Grimaldo, his first goal since joining, and in added time Giuliano Simeone took Hancko's pass and ran from the halfway line on his own to make it three.

I think the score flatters the performance. In the 82 minutes before the penalty, the two sides' xG added together came to just 0.84 (FotMob). The biggest single chance in those 82 minutes was David's shot on 77, saved by Remiro after Arnau Ortiz had carried the ball forward, and even that was 0.18. Atlético did not have a shot on target in the first half, and the corner count was six to Real Sociedad and two to Atlético. Without that handball, it would most likely have finished 0-0, stuck where it was. Once the substitutions had settled the ball down, Atlético did get a little more of the game going their way, but that was not straight after the changes either; it came after the 70-minute mark.

That ends the run of two defeats, at Athletic and then at Liverpool. It is Atlético's first away clean sheet in a competitive game this season, and the first win by three goals at Anoeta since the 0-4 in January 2012. Matarazzo disputed the penalty in his press conference: "the ball hits him on the thigh first, Ochieng is pulling his arm away".

What changed it was the intensity and calm in midfield, once Koke and Cardoso were on

Atlético were pinned back in the first half. One tackle in 45 minutes, 34% of ground duels won, 57 passes in the opposition half against Real Sociedad's 138. With Barrios out, Llorente was in midfield, and Real Sociedad were going after the moments when Baena and Lee Kang-in, ahead of him, took the ball with their backs to goal. As Simeone put it, "Kang-in was coming to receive with his back to goal a lot, and in that position he finds himself hemmed in".

Between the 59th and 60th minutes Baena, Llorente and Lee came off together and Johnny Cardoso, David and Koke went on. In the 23 minutes from there to the penalty on 82, the shots were one for Real Sociedad and four for Atlético. Straight after the changes, though, Atlético were still on the receiving end of Real Sociedad corners and a Soler effort from range, and the shots only started to come one after another from Cardoso's on 70, then David on 77 and Hjulmand on 78. The four together added up to an xG of 0.38, so the chances created were not of great quality.

The way I see it, what changed the game was the intensity and calm in midfield. Koke completed 19 of his 21 passes and did not give away a foul. Simeone said "there are times when it isn't about running, but about the ball running at a different speed", and that what he was looking for was "strength in midfield, more calm to play". It was also only once the ball had settled in midfield that David and Arnau could start moves in front of goal.

Romero is solid. Grimaldo has not bedded in smoothly

Romero is solid. His 11 clearances were the most in the team, he won five duels and lost one, and he did not give away a foul. The penalty on 82 came from his challenge too. In the middle of the back three alongside Hancko and Pubill, he was part of a defence that allowed Real Sociedad only two shots inside the box in 90 minutes.

Grimaldo came away with a goal and an assist, and FotMob gave him the highest rating in the team. But he has not bedded in smoothly. Two of his four crosses found a team-mate, he won three of his six ground duels, and the big chance he allowed Sučić on 33 came from him and Hjulmand leaving the ball to each other. He said as much himself: "The first half wasn't the best. We gave a lot of balls away, we lost duels", and "no pre-season, no holiday, it's hard to come into a new team like that".

It was Atlético's first penalty of the season. Last season Álvarez took six, and Lookman took them in the games he missed. Here Álvarez was out of the squad with muscle tightness and Lookman had gone off on 76, which left on the pitch David, who has taken 41 penalties in his career, and Hancko, who has scored all nine he has taken in matches. Who picked Grimaldo as the taker did not come up in the press conference, nor in any of the coverage I have read. At Leverkusen last season he took five, level with Schick as the most in the team, and scored four. He has taken his share of criticism, and even if it came from the spot, I suspect getting a number next to his name here did him good too.

Start David against Osasuna, give him the minutes, and work towards the best answer for the derby

In his 30 minutes David had two shots, both on target, with an xGOT of 0.90. Those 30 minutes were his first in La Liga. Lookman and Lee started because they had played together for longer, and Simeone had told David as much before the game. Lookman, who started up front and moved to the left in the second half, had the most touches in the opposition box, five, and the most chances created, three, in the team, so he was involved in the play, but in 76 minutes he did not have a single shot.

I think David should start against Osasuna on Wednesday and be given the minutes. From there, I want to see the best answer we have right now for Sunday's derby settled on. Barrios has a problem with the soleus in his right leg, and Marca's expectation is that he misses both Osasuna and the derby. Álvarez has muscle tightness and Sørloth has had a muscle injury since August, and there has been no indication from the club on whether either will be fit for the derby. The two in midfield and the one up front are what I want settled against Osasuna and carried into the derby.

Next up is Osasuna at the Metropolitano on Wednesday 16 September, kick-off 19:00. Four days after that, at 16:15 on Sunday 20 September, Real Madrid visit.

Ratings

Starters

PlayerItCFotMobNotes
Oblak57.8Ninety minutes. All three of his saves were from shots outside the box, including Sergio Gómez's direct free kick on 41, which he kept out high to his left. Gave away a corner in the first half with a mistake with his feet.
Pubill57.4Ninety minutes. Playing somewhere between right centre-back and right-back, he completed 36 of 40 passes, all four of his long balls found a team-mate, and he won all four of his ground duels.
Romero67.6Ninety minutes. Won both of his aerial duels and made six headed clearances. ItC wrote: "As long as he can remain drama-free, the Argentine is going to be an extremely important player from Atleti this season."
Hancko-7.5Ninety minutes. Assisted the third goal. On 42 he swung his right foot at a ball from a corner on the left of the box, but it went wide to the left. Two blocks, three clearances. ItC did not rate him.
Giuliano58.5Ninety minutes. Started at right wing-back and moved forward from the 60th minute. Eight duels won, three tackles and eight recoveries were each the most of any outfield player in the team. The third goal was a quick break with an xG of 0.59.
Llorente47.1Off on 60. Stood in for Barrios on the right of midfield. Two chances created and both of his dribbles completed, but he was dispossessed three times, joint most in the team, and won three of his seven ground duels.
Hjulmand57.5Ninety minutes. Completed 48 of 53 passes, 91%. Both of his headers (24 and 78 minutes) went wide to the left. Fouled three times, the most in the team.
Grimaldo68.7Ninety minutes. The penalty and the assist for the second made him FotMob's Player of the Match. His 70 touches were second only to Romero. His effort from range on 63 went straight at Remiro.
Kang-in Lee46.5Off on 60. Shot left-footed from the right of the box on 5 minutes and put it wide to the right, then faded out of the game. Completed 15 of 22 passes and was dispossessed three times.
Baena46.8Off on 59. His three interceptions were the most in the team, but so were the four times he was dribbled past and his three fouls, and he won two of his nine ground duels. His direct free kick on 20 was blocked.
Lookman46.8Off on 76. Started up front and moved to the left later on. Completed one of three dribbles and was dispossessed three times. Grimaldo's effort from range on 63 came from his pass.

Substitutes

PlayerItCFotMobNotes
Cardoso56.1On from 59 for Baena. On 70 he took David's pass and shot right-footed from outside the box, wide to the left. Booked on 75. Completed 10 of 14 passes.
David67.7On from 60 for Llorente. His first goal for Atlético. His shot on 77 was saved by Remiro, and on 90 he put his left-footed finish into the bottom-left corner.
Koke66.4On from 60 for Lee Kang-in. Both of his long balls and his one cross found a team-mate, and he did not give away a foul. ItC wrote: "Gave a little more structure to the midfield when coming on, allowed to move between a pivot and mediapunta role."
Arnau Ortiz56.5On from 76 for Lookman. In 14 minutes all four of his passes found a team-mate and he won two of his three ground duels. On 77 he carried the ball through the middle to set up David's shot, and on 81 he won a foul off Aramburu.

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