Atletico Madrid suffer Lookman's absence

Ademola Lookman’s absence proved telling, as Elche gained a massive three points in their desperate fight for LaLiga survival, capitalising on a first-half red card to secure a thrilling 3-2 victory over Atlético Madrid at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero.

Diego Simeone’s men arrived hoping to bounce back from their heartbreaking Copa del Rey final shootout defeat to Real Sociedad over the weekend. Instead, they suffered a fourth consecutive league defeat.

Lookman was missing, as he is still nursing an injury sustained during the Copa del Rey final. Still, Simeone’s decision to name a heavily rotated squad suggested that he would have been rested either way.

Despite fielding the heavily rotated side, Atlético Madrid started brightly and landed the first punch early in the contest.

Nicolás González initiated a rapid counter-attack from deep in his own half, executing a slick one-two with Rodri Mendoza before stabbing the ball past Matías Dituro to give Atlético a 1-0 lead.

]Elche responded swiftly. Atlético failed to properly clear a corner, and Tete Morente headed the ball back into the danger zone. David Affengruber reacted fastest, stretching to poke the ball past Jan Oblak to level the score at 1-1.

The match turned completely on its head on the half-hour mark. Thiago Almada was caught dwelling on the ball at the edge of his own penalty area and was dispossessed by Affengruber. 

In a desperate attempt to recover, Almada tugged the Elche defender's shirt inside the box, resulting in a penalty and a straight red card for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity.

André Silva stepped up to the spot and calmly sent Oblak the wrong way, converting the penalty to give Elche a 2-1 advantage.

Incredibly, 10-man Atlético struck straight back. González scored again, making it 2-2 before the break.

In the second half, Elche utilised their numerical advantage to dominate possession and relentlessly pressured the visitors. Simeone introduced Antoine Griezmann and Giuliano Simeone to chase the game, but it was Elche who found the breakthrough.

Affengruber capped off a brilliant individual performance by clipping a smart, precise pass into the area. André Silva positioned himself perfectly to steer home his second goal of the day, securing his LALIGA.

Atlético pushed for a late equaliser, but Elche managed the final minutes professionally to hold on for the 3-2 victory.

The victory catapults Elche to 35 points, pulling them out of the bottom three and injecting immense belief into their survival campaign. 

Conversely, the defeat piles massive pressure on Diego Simeone. Atlético remains stranded on 57 points in fourth place, with their LaLiga form nose-diving just as they prepare for the defining European clashes of their season against Arsenal.