It may have been 2am, but Atletico Madrid fans were in no mood to sleep anyway – 15,000 of them showed up at Madrid's Plaza de Neptuno to celebrate Los Colchoneros' thrilling Copa del Rey win.
It was so much more than a win, though. It was their first Copa triumph in 21 years, and to top it off, victory came against their great enemy.
When Real Madrid and Atletico tussled at the former's Santiago Bernabeu home on May 17, 2013, Diego Simeone's side had not beaten their bitter rivals since 1999.
But success for Atletico signalled their return as a major force in Spanish football.
They will lock horns in the Copa again on Thursday in their quarter-final at the Bernabeu, and for many supporters, the build-up will evoke memories of that iconic and feisty encounter.
Overcoming history and financial muscle
Success had already returned to Atletico. They'd won the Europa League and European Super Cup twice apiece over the previous three years.
And even though Atletico eventually finished a commendable third in LaLiga that season – their highest finish since winning the title in 1996 – there was no getting away from the overwhelming sense of pessimism, which had long been the attitude most associated with the club.
No fewer than 25 derbies had passed since Atletico's last win over Los Blancos, and even that was a relatively hollow victory as they'd ultimately be relegated for the first time since 1930.
Atletico weren't trying to kid themselves into believing they possessed the same weapons as Madrid.
"We have an opponent against whom we cannot make mistakes," Simeone said. "When we talk about the chances that Real Madrid or we have in the final, they are better than us, without a doubt."
Even Atletico striker Radamel Falcao noted Madrid as the favourites because of the "budget they have, and the players they have". He had a point.
"But over one game, everything is different," Simeone added.
For Madrid, the gravity of the occasion couldn't be much more different. Expectation rather hope dominated the build-up as Los Blancos had already missed out on the league title and lost in the Champions League semi-finals.
Only the Copa del Rey could salvage some pride for the season – but not even that would have saved Jose Mourinho's job.
The win that sparked a golden era?
Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia dubbed it "Mourinho's last supper". The Copa del Rey showpiece wasn't technically his last game in charge, but it was his last final with Madrid and a match that many Atletico fans will consider to be up their with their most historic wins.
It was thrilling, gruelling, brutal, but certainly not pretty.
In typical Atletico fashion, Simeone's side did everything they could during the early exchanges to get the faces of Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo – who put Mourinho's side ahead with a 14th-minute header – was a target for a few meaty challenges.
But then Madrid started to return the favour. Ronaldo, too. He clattered Filipe Luis. Raul Albiol let Diego Costa and then Falcao know he was there.
Those two soon combined for the equaliser, however. Falcao's brilliant pass released Costa and his lethal left-footed finish beat Diego Lopez in the Madrid net.
The cards began to fly after half-time, among them a red for Mourinho after protesting a yellow shown to – surprise, surprise – Sergio Ramos.
Madrid dominated, hitting the post twice after also striking it in the first half, but Atletico held on to force extra time, and eight minutes into the additional 30 came the decisive blow.
Koke's right-wing cross to the near post was perfect for Miranda, whose glancing header left the net bulging and Atletico suddenly within touching distance of a famous victory.
Ronaldo's dismissal for kicking out towards Gabi's face made things a little easier once the subsequent touchline brawl settled. The Atletico captain soon followed him for a second booking, but by that point the game was into its fifth minute of stoppage time. Madrid's race was almost run.
A final throw of the dice saw Lopez go up for a last-gasp corner, but Atletico survived and the referee's whistle followed their clearance, sparking bedlam.
Fourteen yellow cards and three reds summed up the bruising nature of the game, though it was Atletico's fight and spirit that came to define it.
Belief takes root
"Mourinho, stay!" came the chants from Atletico fans at full-time.
The Madrid coach was quintessential Mourinho in the aftermath, simultaneously declaring it the worst season of his career while also noting that "for many coaches that would be a good year".
But this was not about Mourinho. No, if anything he was a mere footnote in this tale.
"If you had made the fans an offer in which you'd said: 'we won't win against them for 14 years but when we do, it will be in the Copa final at their stadium, with them scoring first, hitting the post three times and us winning in extra time,' they'd have signed up for that'," Simeone surmised with absolutely surety.
For some – not Atletico fans – this game may have been lost somewhat in the abyss of time given it's nearly 10 years since the occasion.
But that's arguably only the case because of the successes that have come since for Atletico. That Copa triumph was monumental in the moment, but breaking the duopoly of Madrid and Barca in LaLiga – 12 months later and again in 2021 – will be the legacy of Simeone once his chapter as coach ends.
Of course, it's impossible to definitively tie most successes in football to a singular event, one thing that changes the course of history.
But there was clearly a sense of the 2013 Copa victory taking Atletico to another level mentally. They'd finally overcome two great barriers: domestic success and Madrid's derby dominance.
If this glorious era with Simeone is summarised by Atletico upsetting the status quo, then it all leads back to that day.
Nearly 10 years later, Atletico certainly aren't the team they were then, but they'll go into Thursday's duel with belief that took root on the night of May 17, 2013.
St. Louis City v LA Galaxy: Reus sets sights on silverware after dream start
Marco Reus is desperate to bring silverware to the LA Galaxy after making a flying start to his time in MLS, with St. Louis City the destination for his first road game on Sunday.
Reus registered a goal and an assist on debut last week as the Galaxy beat Atlanta United 2-0, maintaining their grip on top spot in the Western Conference.
The Galaxy are five points clear of local rivals Los Angeles FC at the top of the standings ahead of Sunday's trip to St. Louis, who are 13th and 10 points adrift of the playoff picture.
Reus' arrival in Los Angeles has caused plenty of fanfare, but he is focused solely on the team's collective aims.
"It's not about me, it's about the team," he said. "We want to be champions. So we take it game by game.
"Besides the traffic, it's really amazing. The people are so friendly. The weather, it's really nice. When you wake up in the morning and the sun is shining, you start the day differently.
"So I'm really, really happy every morning I come into the dressing room. I'm just happy and excited."
St. Louis played out a thrilling 4-4 draw with the Portland Timbers last week, twice throwing away a two-goal lead to leave interim coach John Hackworth bewildered.
"Really don't know what to say," Hackworth said. "It's hard to imagine coming to a place like this and scoring four goals, being up, and then just losing one-versus-one defensive battles.
"Sometimes, the number of goals you give up, or the number of goals you score, can hide a lot of the transition moments.
"An easy way to prevent some of these defensive miscues from happening is to just be better with the ball."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
St. Louis City – Eduard Lowen
Lowen scored his fourth goal of the MLS season last time out, converting from the penalty spot as St. Louis drew 4-4 with the Timbers.
Only Joao Klauss, with five goals, has outscored him for St. Louis this term.
LA Galaxy – Marco Reus
Reus is one of 20 players in MLS history to record a goal and an assist on his regular-season debut.
He is also the fifth Galaxy player to do so, after Steven Gerrard, Andreas Herzog, Giovani dos Santos and Sasha Victorine. No other team have had more than two players achieve the feat.
MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW
The Galaxy have won 10 of their last 13 regular-season matches, the first time they have done so in a single season since 2011. LA have not recorded 11 wins in a span of 14 matches within a single regular season in the post-shootout era (since 2000).
It would be no surprise to see the points shared in this one, though. All three meetings between St. Louis and the Galaxy have ended level, all with different scorelines (1-1, 2-2, 3-3).
St. Louis have only won one of the last six matches in which they have held the lead in regular-season play dating back to the beginning of June (four draws, one defeat).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
St. Louis City – 35.8%
LA Galaxy – 38.1%
Draw – 26.1%
Raphinha hails Barcelona after statement win over Valladolid
Barcelona forward Raphinha believes the team have laid down a statement of their intent by starting the season with four straight wins in LaLiga.
Raphinha scored the first hat-trick of his career and also delivered two assists on Saturday, as Barca crushed Real Valladolid 7-0 at Camp Nou.
Hansi Flick's side already possess a four-point cushion at the top of the table after also recording victories over Valencia, Athletic Bilbao and Rayo Vallecano.
Raphinha believes their results have demonstrated the club got things right in the transfer market, telling Movistar: "Today's game has shown that there is no need for anyone else to come. We are very happy because of that.
"We are in very good shape. The team is working hard. Today's result shows what we are working for.
"We saw that the coach was on the sidelines asking for more goals and that's our mentality.
"We are hungry and want to score as many goals as we can. When we are dominant like we have been, the best way to respect our rivals is not taking the foot off the gas."
Raphinha was one of the players who faced criticism during Barca's trophyless 2023-24 campaign and was rumoured to be on his way out ahead of the new season.
The Blaugrana again battled financial restrictions throughout the window, allowing Ilkay Gundogan to leave in order to secure the registration of new arrival Dani Olmo.
With his future now certain, Raphinha is keen to nail down a starting spot and contribute on a regular basis.
"I don't know if today's was my best game, but it's certainly among my best. I will try to play even better and as much as I can," the Brazilian said.
"I'm very happy to be able to help the team. I feel good. I knew that this season would be very important for me. I'm looking for my best version to help my team-mates and be more confident."
Lazio 2-2 Milan: Leao salvages draw but Rossoneri still winless
Rafael Leao came off the bench to earn Milan a 2-2 draw with Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, but Paulo Fonseca's side are still without a Serie A win this season.
Milan were in front at the break through Strahinja Pavlovic's eighth-minute goal, the Serbian rising highest to power home a header from Christian Pulisic's corner.
However, Lazio hit back in the second half with Valentin Castellanos and Boulaye Dia scoring in quick succession.
Nuno Tavares' first-time ball into the centre was met by the unmarked Castellanos to level in the 62nd minute, then Dia tapped another Tavares cutback home to put the Biancocelesti ahead four minutes later.
Fonseca reacted by sending on four substitutes, and those changes had a swift impact as three of them combined for the leveller.
Theo Hernandez – who joined Leao in being dropped from the start – picked out Tammy Abraham, and his lay-off allowed Leao to escape Tavares to fire past Ivan Provedel.
The game was preceded by an emotional tribute to the man who led Lazio to their last league title, Sven-Goran Eriksson, who died at the age of 76 on Monday.
A Lazio shirt bearing the Swede's name was displayed on the home bench, while a banner held up by the home fans read: "You brought us to the top of the world... Have a good trip Mr. Sven."
Data Debrief: Milan's slow start continues
New Milan boss Fonseca is already under pressure after overseeing a return of two points from his first three league games at the helm.
It is the first time the Rossoneri have drawn two of their opening three matches in a Serie A season since 2011-12, when they also drew two and lost one,
They went on to finish second that season, just four points adrift of champions Juventus. If a title challenge is to take place this term, rapid improvements are needed.
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