Football

Duran has netted four times in the Premier League this term, with all of those goals coming from the bench.

Last week, he grabbed his first Champions League goal, converting with an audacious lob over Manuel Neuer to hand Villa a memorable 1-0 win over Bayern Munich.

No player to have scored at least three goals in the Premier League this season has a better minutes-per-goal ratio than Duran (46), who has also overperformed his 2.06 expected goals (xG).

Duran was on the verge of leaving Villa over the summer, with both Chelsea and West Ham interested, but he ultimately stayed put.

The club have now moved to secure the 20-year-old's future, and Duran has signed a deal to keep him at Villa Park until 2030.

Duran was unable to wield his usual influence from the bench as Villa drew 0-0 with Manchester United on Sunday, seeing Unai Emery's team head into the international break in fifth place.

Unai Emery’s side moved level on points with sixth-placed Spurs with two games left in the race for Europe following Saturday’s 2-1 victory.

They were superior in every way, with Emi Buendia hitting the bar, and remain in the hunt for a surprise European spot after recovering from successive defeats following strikes from Ramsey and Luiz – despite Harry Kane’s late penalty.

Wretched Tottenham, aimless and lifeless, looked anything but a side competing for the top six.

Just 13 months ago at Villa Park they ran riot as a Son Heung-min hat-trick inspired a 4-0 win but, despite a brief second-half improvement, it was a performance which underlined their continued regression.

In his programme notes Emery said it was the game Villa had been fighting for and it was worth the wait as the hosts grabbed the lead after eight minutes.

Ramsey spread play wide to Leon Bailey, Villa’s only change from last week’s derby defeat at Wolves, and motored into the box to meet Bailey’s low cross ahead of Pedro Porro and find the corner.

There was little or no reaction from Tottenham. The away fans’ focus was on continued chanting for the exit of chairman Daniel Levy while their side remained passive, even with the ball.

With the lead, Villa were the more cohesive unit with Spurs’ only chance ending with a much-delayed offside flag when Son hit the post after running clear.

Tottenham drifted through the half, almost in a daze, and needed Fraser Forster to stop them falling further behind after 32 minutes.

Porro’s error was seized on and Ollie Watkins darted into the area to centre for Bailey, only for the goalkeeper’s fine save to keep him out.

It felt like a second would seal the game for the hosts and they almost doubled their lead five minutes before the break when a diving Watkins just missed Alex Moreno’s teasing cross.

A non-existent Tottenham midfield was being cut through by Villa and the bullish Buendia hit the bar having collected a return pass from Ramsey after breezing through the centre.

Normal service continued in the second half, John McGinn slicing wide from distance and Forster denying Buendia, as Spurs floundered.

Yet they were presented with a glorious chance to level out of the blue when Oliver Skipp robbed Luiz and the ball rolled to Kane.

The England captain had time and space but shot too close to Emi Martinez from just inside the box.

It was a let-off for Villa and sparked an improvement in the visitors as their hosts retreated and began to invite pressure, with Dejan Kulusevski curling wide.

But any comeback hopes were snuffed out by Luiz with 18 minutes left.

Cristian Romero clattered Watkins 25 yards out and all Forster – with his positioning in question – could do was help Luiz’s free-kick into the top corner.

There was still time for Kane to score a 90th-minute penalty after he was fouled by Martinez – following a lengthy VAR check – but it was too late.

The 24-year-old winger is back on the sideline for a third spell this term after leaving the field just before half-time last weekend.  It appears the player picked up what looked to be an ankle injury.  Aston Villa coach Steven Gerrard confirmed that the prognosis is not as bad as first feared but the player will still miss the team’s fixture against Burnley this weekend.

"Leon Bailey won't make the game," the manager told a news conference on Friday. "He left the pitch last week and unfortunately this game will come too soon. I don't think we're dealing with a serious issue... but he won't be at Burnley.”

The injury is the third for Bailey, who has had a stop-start season to life at the club, with a thigh injury previously putting him on the sidelines for weeks, on two separate occasions.  For his part, the forward is determined to recover from his early setbacks and looks determined to return before the end of the season.

“This season has been very tough, but God gives the hardest battles to his strongest soldiers. The most important thing is to overcome all those obstacles in your way & never give up, that’s what makes you a solid/stronger individual,” Bailey posted via social media platform Instagram.

“I just wanna say I really appreciate all the love and support from everyone & I’ll be back VERY soon.”

Police fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse rioting fans who had stampeded on to the pitch after hosts Arema lost 3-2.

East Java police chief Nico Afinta said people died after being crushed and suffocated as they ran for the same exit.

Afinta said 3,000 of the approximately 40,000 spectators in attendance had invaded the pitch initiating "riots", forcing security and police to intervene with tear gas.

"That process caused shortness of breath [and] lack of oxygen and medical teams tried to do rescue efforts in the stadium," he said.

Images captured from inside the stadium show people desperately clambering over fences, while outside the stadium there were torched vehicles, including a police car.

Malang health chief Widjanto Widjoyo put the death toll at 129, based on information from hospitals within the area. Among those were at least two police officers.

The Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) have announced an investigation into the cause of the crush and already banned Arema from hosting games for the remainder of the season.

"We regret the action of Arema supporters at Kanjuruhan Stadium," PSSI chairman Mochamad Iriawan said.

"We offer condolences and apologise to the victims' families and all parties for the incident."

PSSI also have suspended all Liga 1 matches for the weekend following the incident.

Police fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse rioting fans who had stampeded on to the pitch after hosts Arema lost 3-2.

East Java police chief Nico Afinta said people died after being crushed and suffocated as they ran for the same exit.

Afinta said 3,000 of the approximately 40,000 spectators in attendance had invaded the pitch initiating "riots", forcing security and police to intervene with tear gas.

"That process caused shortness of breath [and] lack of oxygen and medical teams tried to do rescue efforts in the stadium," he said.

Images captured from inside the stadium show people desperately clambering over fences, while outside the stadium there were torched vehicles, including a police car.

Malang health chief Widjanto Widjoyo put the death toll at 129, based on information from hospitals within the area. Among those were at least two police officers.

The Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) have announced an investigation into the cause of the crush and already banned Arema from hosting games for the remainder of the season.

"We regret the action of Arema supporters at Kanjuruhan Stadium," PSSI chairman Mochamad Iriawan said.

"We offer condolences and apologise to the victims' families and all parties for the incident."

PSSI also have suspended all Liga 1 matches for the weekend following the incident.

Indonesia is scheduled to host the 2023 Under-20 World Cup in May and June.

"We're sorry for this incident... this is a regrettable incident that 'injures' our football at a time when supporters can watch football matches from the stadium," Indonesian sports and youth minister, Zainudin Amali told Kompas.

"We will thoroughly evaluate the organisation of the match and the attendance of supporters. Will we return to banning supporters from attending the matches? That is what we will discuss."

Spaniard Raya dived low to his right to beat away Mateo Retegui's spot-kick in the 51st minute then sprang across his goal to claw away the forward's follow-up header.

That was the most dramatic moment of an otherwise tepid affair in Bergamo, as Mikel Arteta's team produced a gritty away performance against the Europa League holders.

The closest Arsenal came to scoring was a first-half free-kick by Bukayo Saka that was saved well by Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi, while Gabriel Martinelli blasted over the crossbar to cap a rare Gunners attack after the break. 

La Dea, meanwhile, went close to taking all three points when Juan Cuadrado sent a curling effort narrowly wide of the far corner with 67 minutes on the clock.

Arsenal's next Champions League fixture is a heavyweight clash with Paris Saint-Germain on October 1, while Atalanta go to Shakhtar Donetsk the following day.

Data Debrief: Raya heroics key for Arsenal

In a game where Arsenal struggled going forwards, only generating six attempts at goal worth 0.79 expected goals (xG), the Gunners needed Raya to come up trumps.

He became just the fourth Arsenal goalkeeper to save a penalty in the Champions League, after Richard Wright, Jens Lehmann and Lukasz Fabianski (twice).

Including shoot-outs, he has now kept out four of the last eight penalties he has faced in all competitions, having conceded each of the previous 19 he faced.

The hosts endured a frustrating day in Bergamo, where they were unable to find the breakthrough, despite registering 22 shots on goal to their opponents' four.

Atalanta had collected four points from their opening two games, and quickly established their authority on proceedings.

They went closest to scoring in the 18th minute, when Mario Pasalic rattled the crossbar with his header from Davide Zappacosta's cross.

The hosts continued to control the contest and push for the opening goal in the second half, enjoying just under 70% of the possession.

However, a combination of stubborn defending and Kasper Schmeichel heroics saw Celtic hold on for a hard-earned point.

Data Debrief: Italian Job well done by Celtic

Celtic had lost all seven of their previous Champions League away matches in Italy. The Hoops had also suffered defeat in eight of their last nine games in the competition on the road.

However, they held firm to stop the rot, with Kasper Schmeichel becoming the first Celtic goalkeeper to make as many as six saves and keep a clean sheet in a Champions League game on record.

As for Atalanta, they are only the second team in the Champions League (2008-09 onwards) to register 20+ shots and 50+ touches in the opposition box during a single match without scoring.

The English teenager fired home the opener before Dusan Vlahovic made the points safe in stoppage time, lifting the Bianconeri above Inter and Lazio in the race for Champions League qualification. 

Massimiliano Allegri's side made it back-to-back Serie A victories despite spending long periods under pressure at Gewiss Stadium, with Atalanta registering 24 shots with no reward and twice hitting the woodwork.

The hosts thus missed their opportunity to close the gap on the top four, to which they remain five points adrift.

Atalanta almost gifted Juventus the lead in the 22nd minute as Angel Di Maria pounced on Teun Koopmeiners' loose pass before shooting wide of the far post, while Arkadiusz Milik sent a header off target.

Juventus survived a couple of huge scares before the break. Giorgio Scalvini's header hit the post from Koopmeiners' corner, before Mario Pasalic fired over from 12 yards in stoppage time.

But the visitors broke the deadlock 11 minutes after the restart. Iling-Junior stole possession and fed Adrien Rabiot, before reacting quickest to fire into the roof of the net after the midfielder's cross ricocheted into his path.

Atalanta looked to respond with substitute Luis Muriel shooting wide from distance, while Wojciech Szczesny beat away Koopmeiners' fierce free-kick and Davide Zappacosta stuck the foot of the post from the edge of the area.

After keeping their opponents at bay, Juve sealed the points in the dying moments. Federico Chiesa raced away on the counter before feeding Vlahovic, who whipped a wonderful 20-yard strike into the top corner.

Only moments after being denied a winner by Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan, Lookman arrived unmarked at the far post to nod in a corner in the 87th minute to seal a hard-fought win. 

With 34 points from 15 matches, Tullio Gritti's side are now two points clear of second-placed Napoli, who will play Lazio at home on Sunday. 

Charles De Ketelaere scored against his former club to put Atalanta ahead in the 12th minute, rising highest to head home Marten de Roon's free-kick. 

But Milan struck back 10 minutes later when Rafael Leao's cross into the box was turned home by Alvaro Morata for his fourth league goal of the season. 

The second half was an evenly contested affair, with both sides creating several chances before Lookman struck the decisive blow to leave Paulo Fonseca's side seventh in the table. 

Data Debrief: Atalanta's dream run continues 

The win against the Rossoneri was Atalanta's ninth consecutive victory in Serie A this season, matching the club record set between February and July 2020.

They have also now scored at least two goals in each of their last 12 home games in Serie A, becoming the first team to do so after Juventus between November 2006 and January 2008. 

Only Barcelona (48) have scored more than Atalanta's 38 goals in the five major European Leagues this season.

Lookman's winner was his 11th Serie A goal of the season, and he has been involved in 18 goals in his last 18 league games, also bagging seven assists.

The Europa League winners faced the Europa Conference League runners-up in Bergamo one week after the rest of the league played their final games of 2023-24, with the teams unable to meet before now due to their European commitments. 

A victory would have taken Gian Piero Gasperini's team – who were guaranteed a top-four finish – above Juventus into third, but Andrea Belotti put them behind within six minutes.

Ademola Lookman raced clear to equalise with a dinked finish within six further minutes, but Nicolas Gonzalez's fine volley soon re-established the Viola's lead.

Scalvini drilled in a terrific shot to pull Atalanta level again shortly after the hour mark, but his game would later end in tears as he was helped from the field with an apparent knee issue – a major concern for Italy less than two weeks out from their Euro 2024 opener.

Belotti had put Fiorentina back in the lead following a goalmouth scramble on the stroke of half-time, and Atalanta were unable to force a leveller in the second period as their fine season ended on a flat note.

Data Debrief: Thrilling end to Serie A season

Sunday's game – the final Serie A contest of 2023-24 – saw more first-half goals scored than any other match in the competition this term. Belotti got two of the five, and he now has seven goal involvements (six goals, one assist) in his last six league games against Atalanta.

The result is just a minor inconvenience for La Dea, though. They have finished in Serie A's top four for just the fifth time in their history, previously doing so in 2016-17 (fourth), 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 (all third). 

Madrid handed the Serie A leaders their first defeat in this season's revamped Champions League, having got off to a flying start via Mbappe.

The France international fired into the bottom-left corner in the 10th minute, though he was withdrawn due to an injury 10 minutes before the break.

Charles de Ketelaere equalised with a penalty after Aurelien Tchouameni tripped Sead Kolasinac from behind on the stroke of half-time, but that parity was short-lived as Vinicius slid home on the rebound in the 56th minute.

Bellingham extended Madrid's lead by capping a counterattack three minutes later, with Ademola Lookman reduced the deficit by curling home in the 65th minute.

Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois worked his magic with a string of saves in the latter stages, as Los Blancos moved up to 18th in the 36-team table on nine points, three points off the top eight. Atalanta, meanwhile, are ninth on 11 points. 

Data Debrief: Half-century for Mbappe

Mbappe's goal was his 50th in the Champions League, making him the ninth player to reach that milestone in the competition.

At 25 years and 356 days old, he is the second-youngest to achieve the feat, after Lionel Messi did so at 24 years and 284 days.

Ancelotti will be concerned by the sight of him exiting with an injury midway through the first half, having appeared to pull something while making a run in behind.

Mbappe's goal set Madrid on the way to their first away Champions League victory since beating RB Leipzig 1-0 in the last 16 last season – they had gone four without a win on the road before this one (two draws, two defeats).

Gian Piero Gasperini's side moved five points clear of Napoli ahead of their fixture with Udinese on Saturday, but Atalanta were indebted to goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi.

Carnesecchi made eight saves throughout the contest, producing a stunning stop to deny Cagliari's Sebastiano Luperto a late equaliser. 

But the decisive moment came in the 66th minute when Nicolo Zaniolo turned Raoul Bellanova's cross in at Alen Sherri's near post, just 97 seconds after coming on. 

Zaniolo's last eight goals in Serie A have arrived in away games, after six of his previous seven goals in the competition had been netted in home matches.

Atalanta have also now won five away games in a row in Serie A for the first time since doing so between October and December 2021 (six).

The Turkey international was a regular fixture for Atalanta last season, making 42 appearances across all competitions and scoring twice, and the Serie A club have decided to make his stay permanent.

Atalanta had a purchase option for the defender as part of the deal that brought him to the club for the 2021-22 season, and they have now exercised that clause, paying €20million for the services of the 24-year-old.

The deal could rise by a further €2.5m if additional clauses are met, while Juventus will also receive 10 per cent of any future transfer fee that is earned from a sale of Demiral.

It had been suggested that Atalanta would not exercise their option to sign the 35-cap Turkey international but they confirmed their move on Friday, with Juventus then issuing their own confirmation on Sunday.

The transfer does not fully answer the questions regarding his future, however, as Newcastle United remain attributed with an interest in the services of Demiral, with reports indicating he is seen as an alternative to Lille defender Sven Botman.

Twenty-two years later, Xabi Alonso's Werkself have already gone some way to banishing those ghosts by making Bundesliga history, Saturday's 2-1 win over Augsburg completing their unbeaten title-winning campaign.

This week, they have a chance to make it an unbeaten treble, heading to Dublin for Wednesday's Europa League final before taking on Kaiserslautern in the DFB-Pokal on Saturday. 

Looking to deny Bayer one of the greatest achievements in recent memory are Atalanta, participating in their first European final following a memorable run that included a stunning quarter-final elimination of Liverpool.

Ahead of the first of 2023-24's European finals, here's the key storylines and Opta facts surrounding the two contenders.  

One down, two to go

Wednesday's game offers Bayer the chance to complete the second leg of an unbeaten treble. 

On Saturday, they became the first team in Bundesliga history to enjoy an unbeaten season, while only Arsenal (in 2003-04) and Juventus (2011-12) had previously achieved the feat in Europe's top five leagues this century. 

Leverkusen are still unbeaten in 51 games in all competitions this season (42 wins, nine draws), with 12 of those coming in the Europa League (nine wins, three draws). 

Three sides have previously won the competition without losing a game, with each of those triumphs coming within the last five editions – Chelsea in 2018-19, Villarreal in 2020-21 and Eintracht Frankfurt in 2021-22.  

Wednesday's match will be the third major European final in Leverkusen's history, with Bayer beating Espanyol in a two-legged UEFA Cup final in 1988 and losing 2-1 to a Zinedine Zidane-inspired Real Madrid in the 2002 Champions League showpiece. 

Alonso has taken Germany and Europe by storm with his brand of progressive, possession-based football, and Bayer's total of 6,622 successful passes in the Europa League this season is the most by any team in a single edition since 2019-20 victors Sevilla recorded 6,971. 

Their passing accuracy of 89.5 per cent is the second highest on record (behind Nice in 2017-18, 90 per cent), while their 94.3 per cent success rate with short passes is the best ever recorded in a Europa League campaign.

But even when Leverkusen have been less than free-flowing, they have found ways to avoid defeat.

They squandered a 2-0 first-leg lead in the second leg of their semi-final tie against Roma, only to fight back for a 2-2 draw which saw them progress 4-2 on aggregate. Josip Stanisic scored a 97th-minute equaliser in that game, the sixth goal Bayer have scored in the 90th minute or later in the Europa League this term.

That is the most ever managed by a team in a single major European campaign, and they also rescued their unbeaten Bundesliga record with last-gasp strikes against Borussia Dortmund and Stuttgart last month.

If Leverkusen find themselves with their backs against the wall on Wednesday, viewers would be wise not to rule them out.

Can the nearly men get over the line?  

Leverkusen's Bundesliga triumph has allowed them to shake off their "nearly men" tag, but Atalanta are hoping it's a case of fourth time lucky for them in major finals under Gian Piero Gasperini.

La Dea, whose only major trophy win came in the Coppa Italia in 1962-63, were beaten 1-0 by Juventus in the Coppa Italia final last week – their third loss in that competition's showpiece game under Gasperini.

However, they bounced back with a 2-0 Serie A win over Lecce on Saturday, Gianluca Scamacca and Charles De Ketelaere scoring as they secured a top-five finish and Champions League qualification for 2024-25.

A return to Europe's premier club competition is just reward for a fine campaign for the Bergamo club, who will finish a Serie A season with more than 65 points (currently 66) for the fifth time (with all seasons adjusted for three points per win).

The four previous instances – in 2016-17 (72), 2018-19 (69), 2019-20 (78) and 2020-21 (78) – also all came under Gasperini. 

While their free-flowing attacking play has returned this campaign, La Dea have also been excellent without the ball, facing just 2.8 shots on target per Europa League game on average. That is the lowest rate of any team in the 2023-24 competition, with opponents Bayer facing 4.1 per match.

Their backline can expect to be tested on Wednesday, though, with Bayer's total of 232 shots in the Europa League this season the most by any team in a single edition since Chelsea tallied 247 in 2018-19.

The coaches

Fans can expect an intriguing tactical battle between two progressive coaches at the Aviva Stadium.

Gasperini has overseen the most successful period in Atalanta's history since taking charge in 2016, though this will be his first European final as a manager. 

At the age of 66 years and 117 days, he will become the oldest coach to take charge of his first major European final, and the oldest overall since Jupp Heynckes led Bayern Munich to glory in the 2013 Champions League final (68 years, 16 days).

His counterpart Alonso – at the age of 42 years and 179 days – will be the youngest coach to manage a men's European final since Roberto Di Matteo oversaw Chelsea's memorable victory in the 2012 Champions League final at the age of 41 years and 356 days, beating Heynckes' Bayern.

Having played for Liverpool in the 2005 and 2007 Champions League finals, Alonso will also become just the fourth person to play in and manage in a major European final this century.

Zidane played for Madrid in the 2002 Champions League final then managed them in the 2016, 2017 and 2018 editions. Antonio Conte played for Juventus in the 2003 Champions League showpiece and coached Inter for the 2020 Europa League final, while Giovanni van Bronckhorst achieved the feat as a Barcelona player (2006 Champions League) and Rangers boss (2022 Europa League).

Players to watch

The likes of Alejandro Grimaldo, Victor Boniface, Granit Xhaka and Robert Andrich have played crucial roles for Bayer this season, but their key man is undoubtedly Florian Wirtz, who was named Bundesliga Player of the Year on Monday.

Wirtz scored 11 goals and provided 11 assists throughout Bayer's triumphant Bundesliga campaign, also recording eight goal involvements (four goals, four assists) in the Europa League this term – the most of any Leverkusen player.

Meanwhile, his total of 28 open-play chances created in the 2023-24 competition has only previously been bettered by five players in a single edition, most recently Amin Younes for Ajax in 2016-17 (30).

For Atalanta, all eyes will be on Scamacca, who scored outstanding goals against Liverpool and Marseille in the last two rounds.

The former West Ham striker has six goals in the Europa League this season, a tally only previously bettered by two Italian players in a single edition. Giuseppe Rossi netted 10 times for Villarreal in the 2010-11 tournament, while Ciro Immobile scored eight for Lazio in 2017-18.

Prediction 

Leverkusen enter Wednesday's game as favourites, with the Opta supercomputer rating their chances of victory within 90 minutes at 50.2 per cent.

Atalanta, however, should not be ruled out, having won seven of their nine matches since losing 1-0 in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie against Liverpool (one draw, one defeat).

They are assigned a 24.4 per cent chance of victory, with 25.4 per cent of the supercomputer's match simulations finishing level, which would mean extra time and potentially penalties. 

Iker Muniain's delightful 37th-minute opener was cancelled out 129 seconds later by Diego Costa, who claimed his third goal of the season and first since October.

The striker paid tribute in his celebration to Atletico's women's team midfielder Virginia Torrecilla, who underwent successful surgery to have a brain tumour removed last month. Costa showed a shirt bearing her name.

Substitute Santiago Arias came closest to snatching all the points for Los Colchoneros, who sit sixth in the table on goal difference.

Marcos Llorente opened up Athletic with a fine diagonal throughball in the 12th minute, sending Yannick Carrasco scampering through to shoot just wide across goalkeeper Unai Simon, who briefly lost his footing.

Jan Oblak was uncharacteristically wobbly when he took two attempts to grasp Inaki Williams' 25th-minute header but the Slovenia international displayed his brilliant best when he kept out Yeray's glancing attempt at full stretch.

Oblak had no chance when Muniain dispatched a clever finish with the outside of his right boot into the bottom right corner.

Atletico sprung immediately from their mid-half slumber – Koke's cute pass leaving Costa to slide a finish beyond Simon.

That seemed to inspire a role reversal during the early stages of the second half, with Atletico enjoying plenty of attacking territory but Athletic keeping their visitors honest on the break as Yuri Berchiche crashed an effort into the side-netting.

Diego Simeone's anguish in the dugout was clear when Arias arrived unmarked at the back post 10 minutes from time, drawing a brilliant point-blank save from Simon.

What does it mean? Atletico away form still a worry

Simeone's side might have memorably prevailed at one of European football's great fortresses in their previous competitive match, but that victory at Anfield cannot obscure the fact that they have now won just one of their past 11 away games in LaLiga. They are level on points with Real Sociedad and Getafe in fourth and fifth respectively and such diminishing returns on the road are why their battle for Champions League football will probably go down to the wire.

Muniain and Garcia roll back the years

Lockdown has done nothing for anyone's conception of time and dates, but when Athletic's creative forwards took control of the first half, it was easy to imagine being somewhere during the early stages of the previous decade. Muniain – still only 27 – was irresistible at times, evoking memories of when he was a wonderkid and Spanish football's next superstar in waiting. Playing against the club he starred for in their 2013-14 title win, Raul Garcia proved a superb foil for the number 10.

Llorente ill-suited to number 10 duties

Marcos Llorente's two-goal heroics against Liverpool undoubtedly played a part in Simeone's decision to start him in an advanced role behind Costa. Although the Spain international's play was typically neat and he did not lack for work rate, the absence of his creative qualities from deep as the likes of Thomas Lemar and Alvaro Morata awaited second-half introductions was perplexing.

What's next?

Atletico are on the road again at Osasuna on Wednesday, when Athletic travel to struggling Eibar.

A week on from missing from the spot against Liverpool in the Champions League, Mbappe again fluffed his lines from 12 yards after Antonio Rudiger had been fouled.

Athletic were leading 1-0 thanks to Alex Berenguer's 53rd-minute effort, but Mbappe's tame effort was easily saved by Julen Agirrezabala.

Madrid did drag themselves level through Jude Bellingham in the 78th minute, yet Athletic were swiftly celebrating a second at the other end.

Federico Valverde gifted the ball to Gorka Guruzeta, who duly struck the winner beyond Thibaut Courtois.

The defeat sees Madrid remain four points behind Barcelona in LaLiga, though Los Blancos do have a game in hand.

Real missed the chance to close the gap on leaders Barcelona who top the standings on 37 points, four ahead of second-placed Real who have a game in hand. 

Data Debrief: Mbappe makes a mess of it

Mbappe has now missed two of his five penalties for Madrid in all competitions, and this represents another dent for the France star as he looks to get his career in Spain truly up and running.

Madrid, meanwhile, have now lost five of their last 11 matches in all competitions (W6), suffering one more defeat than in their previous 73 matches (W52 D17 L4).

Bilbao, on the other hand, became the only team to have beaten Madrid and Barcelona in all competitions in 2024.

A week on from missing from the spot against Liverpool in the Champions League, Mbappe again fluffed his lines from 12 yards after Antonio Rudiger had been fouled.

Athletic were leading 1-0 thanks to Alex Berenguer's 53rd-minute effort, but Mbappe's tame effort was easily saved by Julen Agirrezabala.

Madrid did drag themselves level through Jude Bellingham in the 78th minute, yet Athletic were swiftly celebrating a second at the other end.

Federico Valverde gifted the ball to Gorka Guruzeta, who duly struck the winner beyond Thibaut Courtois.

The defeat sees Madrid remain four points behind Barcelona in LaLiga, though Los Blancos do have a game in hand.

Real missed the chance to close the gap on leaders Barcelona who top the standings on 37 points, four ahead of second-placed Real who have a game in hand. 

Data Debrief: Mbappe makes a mess of it

Mbappe has now missed two of his five penalties for Madrid in all competitions, and this represents another dent for the France star as he looks to get his career in Spain truly up and running.

Madrid, meanwhile, have now lost five of their last 11 matches in all competitions (W6), suffering one more defeat than in their previous 73 matches (W52 D17 L4).

Bilbao, on the other hand, became the only team to have beaten Madrid and Barcelona in all competitions in 2024.

Herrera joined Athletic on an initial loan deal in August and has made 11 appearances this season, six of those being starts.

The 33-year-old, who was born in Bilbao and previously spent three years at Athletic from 2011, has now officially joined the LaLiga club until the end of the 2023-24 campaign.

Both sides confirmed the news on their official websites on Wednesday, with the deal going through prior to Tuesday's transfer deadline.

It brings an end to Herrera's time with PSG, whom he joined from Manchester United as a free agent in July 2019 and made 95 appearances for.

He won the Ligue 1 title, Coupe de France and Trophee des Champions twice each, while also lifting the Coupe de la Ligue, though he was never considered a regular starter.

Former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain defender Heinze replaces Frank de Boer, who departed Atlanta by mutual agreement in July.

Heinze arrives after leading Velez Sarsfield to a third-place finish in 2019-20, having joined the Argentine outfit in 2017.

The 42-year-old and 72-time Argentina international also spent time in charge of Argentinos Juniors (2016-17) and Godoy Cruz (2015).

"I'm excited to be taking on this new challenge with Atlanta United," said Heinze, who won the Premier League with United and LaLiga with Madrid.

"I believe that my football philosophy is aligned with the vision of the club and their structure and facilities are world-class. I can't wait to meet the players, the staff and the fans and get to work in 2021."

Atlanta president Darren Eales added: "This is a milestone moment in Atlanta United history, and we couldn't be more excited to welcome Gabriel as our next head coach.

"We cast the net widely for this important hire, and Gabriel quickly emerged as the number one candidate. Gabriel is one of the top coaches in South American soccer and we are delighted that he chose Atlanta United.

"Whilst his resume speaks for itself, Gabriel's playing philosophy and commitment to youth development closely align with our ideas at Atlanta United, and we are happy to welcome him as we move into our club's next chapter."

Atlanta did not qualify for the MLS playoffs this season after finishing 12th.

Chicago thought they had rescued a point from substitute Kacper Przybylko's 90th-minute strike but there was to be drama in the final minute of nine stoppage-time minutes.

Machop Chol glanced on Brooks Lennon's corner, with Juanjo Purata's poke deflecting off Haile-Selassie's back and dribbling over the goalline. The win meant Atlanta stretched their unbeaten streak to four games.

Georgios Giakoumakis had put Atlanta ahead in the 13th minute, lashing home from  Lennon's cutback.

But Chicago squared the game up from Przybylko's strike after he had been thwarted with his initial attempt, only for the hosts to find a late winner.