October 01, (THEWILL) — Atletico Madrid claimed their opening UEFA Champions League victory of the campaign with a comprehensive 5-1 triumph over Eintracht Frankfurt at the Metropolitano. The home side struck early when Giuliano Simeone’s inventive play down the right flank allowed Giacomo Raspadori to convert a deflected cutback inside four minutes.
Robin Le Normand doubled the advantage midway through the first half after Kaua Santos cleared Antoine Griezmann’s effort off the line, and Griezmann himself added a third in first-half stoppage time from Julian Alvarez’s delivery.
Frankfurt responded after the interval when Jonathan Burkardt rifled a first-time effort past Jan Oblak in the 57th minute, briefly reducing the deficit. Griezmann appeared to have netted again 10 minutes later following a clever backheel from Simeone, but the goal was ruled out after the ball struck his hand on its way over the line.
Giuliano Simeone restored the three-goal margin in the 70th minute, stooping to meet Alvarez’s corner at the near post before celebrating in front of his father Diego, who was serving a one-match touchline suspension. Alvarez completed the scoring eight minutes from time, converting from the penalty spot after substitute Aurele Amenda was penalised for handball inside the area.
The victory marked an emphatic return to form in European competition for the Spanish side, who dominated proceedings throughout the evening. Alvarez contributed two assists and a late penalty, while Griezmann remained central to the attacking efforts despite seeing one effort disallowed. Frankfurt’s brief second-half improvement proved insufficient to mount a serious comeback.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
