The Spanish soccer league is having its best season ever and it has all come down to the last day. Barcelona home to Atletico Madrid. If and only if Barcelona win they are champions, Atletico win the title with a win or a draw. No matter what was to happen, this game was going down in history as possibly the most famous game La Liga has seen to date. And it didn’t disappoint.
Camp Nou was jacked up and Barcelona came out in no mood to let their supporters down. They dominated possession in the first half save for a few instances. In the 8th minute Gerard Pique was given a yellow card which finally gave Atletico the ball. One minute later Gabi slid a nice pass over to JuanFran charging in from the right who crossed it, and the ball had to be dangerously chipped over the crossbar by Pique. The ensuing corner by Koke was knocked away by Dani Alves. Later in the half, Barca keeper Pinto almost made a mess of a Koke corner but survived.
Atletico was dealt two huge blows within minutes of each other. In the 15th their best scorer Diego Costa went down apparently re-injuring his leg. Seven minutes later Arda Turan seemingly injured his hip. Two substitutes had to be made by the 22nd minute, and on came Adrian and Raul Garcia.
Then they were dealt an even huger blow when Chilean star Alexis Sanchez twirled an unleashed an absolutely amazing shot to the near-side top corner. Unbelievable goal, 1-0 Barca. It would stay that way through the first half, in which Dani Alves was Barca’s best in my opinion, making a few great defensive plays and slotting in a few sweet crosses.
The strongest part of Atletico’s performance in the first half was that of the defensive wiz Diego Godin, who was the difference clearing no less than five balls from the goalmouth. He was given a yellow in the 36th and then Tiago was given one minutes later. Other than the stellar play of Godin, as the halftime whistle sounded the visitors were looking just about dead.
Whatever Atletico coach Diego Simeone said at halftime seemed to have riled up his squad, especially his Uruguayan countrymen Godin. The Colchoneros came out firing in the second half. David Villa, whom Atletico needed to step up with Costa off, drilled a shot off the post. Moments later another attempt from Villa just missed. Quickly Atletico had seized control of the game. In the 49th minute Godin headed home a beautiful Koke corner and all of a sudden it’s advantage Atletico.
Keeping with the day’s theme, Busquets went down with an injury and was replaced by Alexander Song – who was later given a yellow – in the defensive midfield. Five minutes later in the 62nd Gerardo Martino made an offensive-minded substitution when he brought on the Brazilian superstar Neymar for Pedro, who had played well and created a few scoring chances.
Barca gradually began to take over again. Neymar made some slashing runs and Messi whaled a free kick into the wall from just outside the box in the 71st.
Simeone made an interesting move a minute later when he substituted for a substitute by taking off Adrian for midfielder Jorge Sosa. In the 77th Barca used their last sub and brought on their all-time most capped player Xavi for Cesc Fabregas.
Dani Alves continued his excellent play in the second half, forcing Thibaut Courtois to make a leaping save on a laser beam in the 80th minute, and supplying a sneaky cross in the 85th that (who else?) Godin had to clear. Javier Mascherano also played well, making a few defensive stops and starting a few rushes upfield. Nonetheless the game was still tied and time was running out.
Barca had a defensive lapse in the 83rd, when yet another dangerous cross from Koke hit a bunch of legs in front but bounced harmlessly away.
A game like this wouldn’t be complete without a bit of controversy. So in the 84th Adriano picked out Pique – who was making runs into the box all day as usual – and he was pushed down by none other than Godin, but the referee didn’t blow the whistle. I thought it was a good non-call, a good physical defensive play by a player who had a bevy of them on the day.
Other than the fifth yellow of the match to Raul Garcia, Atletico was able to weather the storm and win their first La Liga championship since 1996, and their 10th overall. It is the first time a club other than Barca or Real Madrid has won the title in a decade. Godin is my man of the match without question.
Next up for Atletico is the Champions League Final against their arch-rivals Real Madrid next week.
Article By: Anthony Schiano
