MADRID: Antoine Griezmann’s double helped Atletico Madrid bounce back from their Champions League elimination at the hands of Real Madrid to strengthen their hold on third place in La Liga with a 3-0 win over Elche at the Vicente Calderon on Saturday.
It was a sluggish start from Atletico, who were beaten in the Champions League for the second successive year by Real on Wednesday.
And they began to press more after the break and Griezmann was the most alert to nod the ball home from a narrow angle after Elche keeper Przemyslaw Tyton saved Koke’s shot in the 55th minute.
The Polish ‘keeper was then slow to react to Raul Garcia’s left-footed effort from 25 metres after 63 minutes as Atletico added to their lead.
Griezmann then nipped in at the near post to convert a Saul Niguez cross 14 minutes from the end to record his third brace in as many league games and become the highest scoring Frenchman ever in a single La Liga season with 22 goals.
Diego Simeone’s last season’s champions have 72 points, seven more than fourth-placed Valencia who play Granada on Monday and nine behind league leaders Barcelona.
Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2015
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