Real Sociedad travelled to the Spanish capital yesterday for their match against Atlético Madrid. It could be a great preview of the Copa del Rey final that will be played at the end of April. Diego Simeone’s men will face the Basque side in Sevilla.
When I think about the team from San Sebastián, I quickly get a flashback to a match I attended with some friends in September 2022. We were on holiday in Spain and went to the Europa League home game against Omonia Nicosia. It ended 2-1, but it was one of the most boring matches I ever witnessed.
Back to the present. Sociedad, coached by Pellegrino Matarazzo, has been performing very well this calendar year. Only losing once so far, against Real Madrid (4-1). They also secured their place in the cup final by eliminating big rivals Athletic Club. It will be their first final since 2020.
For Atlético it has been a bit longer since they last reached the final. In 2013 they defeated Real Madrid. Thibaut Courtois was Atleti’s hero that evening with several incredible saves. His stop against Mesut Özil is one I personally still remember after all these years.
Enough about the cup final for now. That is for later. Let’s talk about the La Liga match on matchday 27. The last time the visitors won away at Atlético was back in 2013. The Txuri-urdin have never won a single game at the Metropolitano.
The game started and it quickly became interesting. After five minutes Alexander Sørloth easily placed the ball past goalkeeper Alex Remiro. The ball came from a long throw that was flicked on by José María Giménez and fell perfectly for the Norwegian. Just like in the Estadio Anoeta he scored against his former club.
But the lead did not last long. In the 9th minute the equaliser was already there. When Carlos Soler received the ball at the edge of the penalty area he made it count immediately. The former PSG player curled the ball beautifully into the top left corner past Jan Oblak.
The start certainly did not disappoint. Both teams found the net early. Yet the goals were not the most memorable moment of the first half. Giménez picked up an injured pigeon that could no longer fly from the pitch and was rewarded with a big round of applause. Something you don’t see every day.
Apart from that Atlético did most of the attacking. Diego Simeone’s old tactic of mainly defending and relying on counterattacks seems to have disappeared. Still there were no more goals before the break and referee Adrián Cordero sent both teams to the dressing room with the score at 1-1.
Around the hour mark the home side came close to taking the lead, but the Norwegian giant sent his effort over the bar. Many supporters already thought that chance was going in. No worries though. In the 64th minute the lead finally appeared on the scoreboard. Antoine Griezmann produced a wonderful backheel that perfectly set up Nico González. The Argentine substitute only had to guide the ball past Remiro.
The entire stadium, including the Atlético players, seemed to still be enjoying the goal and especially the brilliant assist. From the restart the Basque side struck immediately. Euro’s winner Mikel Oyarzabal fired the ball straight past Oblak from the edge of the box. A beautiful goal from the captain. Just like in the first half the home side could not hold their lead for long.
It was already a spectacle, but the cherry on top was still to come. With only ten minutes left on the clock Matteo Ruggeri delivered a good cross into the box. There was Gonzalez again. He met it perfectly with his head near the penalty spot and scored the 3-2. The entire stadium jumped to its feet. It was the striker’s third La Liga goal while on loan from Juventus.
This time the script did not repeat itself. Atlético and Sociedad had been trading blows all evening. Each time the home side scored the visitors responded quickly. But at 3-2 the story ended. A night Nico González will remember.
It was a fantastic match from start to finish. For the home side it was their fourth consecutive home victory in all competitions. They continue to strengthen their place in the top three and can already start thinking about Champions League football next season.
La Real will be less happy about their trips to the Spanish capital. It was their second defeat of 2026 and both came in Madrid. They are currently 8th and will have to fight for European football.
A lthough both teams can already grab that European ticket before the season ends. In April the two teams will meet again in the Copa del Rey final. If this match was a preview of what is to come, then we can expect a huge spectacle on the 18th of April in Sevilla.
