Atletico Madrid 2-1 Almeria: Atletico battle past bottom-placed Almeria to preserve home record

Atletico believed they had a perfect start in the game, after five minutes, when a deflected clearance hit Samuel Lino's shoulder and ended up in the path of Antoine Griezmann. Griezmann skillfully struck the half-volley into the net past goalkeeper Luís Maximiano. However, VAR ruled it out for offside.

Nevertheless, Atletico continued to dominate the match. Rodrigo de Paul and Angel Correa both came close to scoring before they finally took the lead in the 18th minute. Griezmann won the ball on the left and passed it to Alvaro Morata, who calmly evaded his marker and slotted the ball into the net, scoring his eighth league goal of the season.

Only five minutes later, Atletico extended their lead. Griezmann once again caused trouble for Almeria, as his through ball found Marcos Llorente, who delivered a well-timed pass across the goal for Correa to tap in.

Despite Atletico's dominance, De Paul's free-kick was the closest they came to scoring a third goal before halftime. However, Almeria finished the first half strongly and had a close chance through Leo Baptistao.

After halftime, Almeria continued to pose a threat. Sergio Arribas had a close chance following a clever corner routine, and Adri Embarba's diving header forced Jan Oblak into action.

Eventually, Almeria found their breakthrough just after the hour mark. Alejandro Pozo's shot deflected off his teammate Baptistao, making it difficult for Oblak to save. Although Oblak made the initial save, Baptistao converted the rebound into a goal.

Almeria even came close to equalizing soon after, but Oblak saved Arribas' shot after a quick interchange with Embarba.

In the final stages of the match, Atletico pushed for a second goal but was unable to find the back of the net. Nevertheless, Diego Simeone's team held on to secure their eighth home win of the season and maintain a perfect record of nine wins in nine matches when scoring first.

Despite scoring for the first time in three matches, Almeria remains on four points and is still waiting for their first-ever victory against Atletico.