Atletico go fourth after dominant win over Osasuna
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates REUTERS/Susana Vera
MADRID (Reuters) - Atletico Madrid moved back into the top four by earning a commanding 2-0 win at home to Osasuna on Saturday for their first victory in four La Liga games.
Diego Simeone's side dominated the match and Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera had to make seven saves in the first half to keep the game goalless.
Atletico finally broke the deadlock when their top scorer Alvaro Morata headed home a free kick from Kieran Trippier in the 67th minute.
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Susana Vera
Midfielder Saul Niguez made sure of victory by scoring with a dinked finish in the 75th minute, starting the move by winning the ball back deep in Osasuna's half.
The win rounded off a positive week for Atletico, who sealed a place in the last 16 of the Champions League with a win over Lokomotiv Moscow, and took them up to fourth spot in the standings on 29 points after 17 games.
They are six points adrift of leaders Barcelona who have a game in hand and five behind Real Madrid who have played two fewer matches.
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix in action with Osasuna's Pervis Estupinan and Ruben Garcia REUTERS/Susana Vera
"We play every game as if it were our last and we were very keen to win tonight. We needed to and the team gave another big response after the huge effort we made on Wednesday," Simeone said.
"We created a lot of chances, especially in the first half when their goalkeeper was fantastic, but we are pleased we were able to score twice because football is all about taking your chances."
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone reacts REUTERS/Susana Vera
(Reporting by Richard Martin; Editing by Ken Ferris)
Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata in action REUTERS/Susana VeraSoccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata celebrates after the match REUTERS/Susana VeraSoccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata misses a chance to score REUTERS/Susana VeraSoccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez heads at goal REUTERS/Susana VeraSoccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates REUTERS/Susana VeraSoccer Football - La Liga Santander - Atletico Madrid v Osasuna - Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - December 14, 2019 Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez in action with Osasuna's Ezequiel Avila REUTERS/Susana Vera
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