Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone hailed Joao Felix for his impact in Saturday's 3-2 loss to Cadiz amid reports about transfer interest in the Portuguese forward.
Atleti, who were eliminated from the Champions League after a 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, conceded within the first minute against Cadiz and trailed 2-0 in the dying moments before 60th-minute substitute Joao Felix led a late rally.
The 22-year-old's 85th-minute over-head kick was deflected in by Luis Hernandez, before the Portuguese equalised with a rifled shot in the 89th minute. The goals were his first since April.
Joao Felix spurned a late header which Atleti would lament as Ruben Sobrino bundled the ball in from close range for a 98th-minute winner for Cadiz.
Despite the defeat, Simeone hailed Joao Felix for his impact, coming fresh from a report that claimed Atletico rejected a €100 million offer for the Portuguese from Bayern Munich in the off-season.
"Joao came in to do what he knows how to do, he did it very well," Simeone told DAZN.
"He scored a lucky goal but with the initiative to generate danger, he was the most dangerous of the forwards that were in the short time he entered.
"He scored a great goal, the second is a great goal. Hopefully he can keep that because in reality that is the player we all want."
Joao Felix, who has also been linked with a January transfer, has made 11 appearances in LaLiga this season, with five starts.
The defeat ended a tough week for Simeone, given their Champions League exit, with Club Brugge and Porto progressing in Group B. Atletico went behind in the first minute after Theo Bongonda's early strike which Simeone lamented.
"It was difficult at the start, after the blow the other day it was another blow," Simeone said. "After that we played a good first half, we had chances, we didn't take them.
"In the second half we went further behind at 2-0. Then the changes were important, Pablo Barrios coming on for his debut, Joao came on and played like we need him to play, Griezmann came on and gave us more calm in attack.
"We got into the game at 2-1, then the great goal from Joao for 2-2. We're in a moment when things aren't going our way."
Real Madrid hit Twente for seven, five-star Wolfsburg also win big
Real Madrid had six different goalscorers as they trounced Twente 7-0 in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, while Wolfsburg beat Galatasaray 5-0.
Signe Bruun opened the scoring three minutes into the Group B encounter at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, then Maria Mendez's header gave Madrid a 2-0 half-time lead.
Madrid, who had won one and lost one of their opening two games in the tournament, got a third through Naomie Feller five minutes into the second half, then Caroline Weir made it 4-0 with a brilliant free-kick.
Mendez headed home her second of the encounter shortly after the hour mark, while Oihane Hernandez and Carla Camacho got on the scoresheet late on to complete the rout.
The victory took Madrid second in the Group B standings ahead of Chelsea's trip to Celtic.
Wolfsburg were also convincing victors in Group A, getting off the mark for this season's competition as Rebecka Blomqvist scored a hat-trick in their 5-0 thrashing of Galatasaray.
The Bundesliga side – who failed to pick up a point or score a goal in their opening two matches – had a narrow 1-0 lead at half-time through Joelle Wedemeyer, before Blomqvist took centre-stage in the second period.
She tapped home after Janina Minge struck the crossbar, then added her second goal in the 77th minute and her third six minutes into stoppage time.
Vivien Endemann powered home a fifth for Wolfsburg one minute later, as they provisionally moved within three points of Lyon and Roma ahead of their meeting.
Taylor pleased with City's physical test during Hammarby win
Manchester City head coach Gareth Taylor was pleased with how his team stood up to the physical challenge of Hammarby in their 2-0 Champions League victory on Tuesday.
City's win extended their unbeaten start to the season, having won every game in all competitions following a 2-2 draw against Arsenal on opening day.
“Difficult game for us, physical challenge, a physical team in Hammarby. I think they outnumber us a little bit in terms of size, considering when you look at our midfield. But I thought the girls handled it really well," Taylor said after the game
“I thought we dominated the game. In the early parts we were just a little bit off in our final action. We just needed to speed up a little bit in terms of being on the end of it, and we spoke about that at half-time, and we score with Laura getting into that type of position we’d been talking about.
“[The physicality was something] we were prepared for, but dealing with it is a different thing. Having Bunny [Khadija Shaw] and Alanna [Kennedy] on the pitch, two of our more physical players, is really important, particularly for set-plays.
“At 1-0 we were defending a couple of scenarios like that, Yama [Ayaka Yamashita] making a really good save at one point. Then Aoba [Fujino] got the goal that maybe allowed us to change things up a little bit more, get some people off that we’d like to manage.
“I think the girls have dealt with it really well tonight. We expected it, we thought it would be difficult, and they rose to the challenge.”
The victory leaves City top of their Champions League group with a 100% record after three matches, three points above second-placed Barcelona.
Taylor had made changes to City's starting XI, with Lauren Hemp among the trio to drop out from the weekend and she did not feature in the squad. Ahead of their weekend game against Chelsea, who are second in the WSL, Taylor explained the reasoning behind Hemp's absence.
“We’ve just got an issue with Lauren that we just need to analyse a little bit further, that’s all," he said.
“It’s something that potentially happened in the Palace game [on 3 November]. She was able to play in the Tottenham game [last Friday] but wasn’t able to tonight, so we’ll just take a little bit longer to assess and find out more.
“Hopefully [she can play against Chelsea]. There’s an opportunity there, we’ll just have to take a moment tomorrow, have a good conversation and find out where we’re at with the medical staff.”
Simeone hails Atleti's dirty work after Mallorca win
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone was proud of how his players dug deep to earn their fourth straight win in all competitions, beating Real Mallorca 1-0 in LaLiga.
Julian Alvarez scored for the seventh time since his arrival from Manchester City as Los Colchoneros earned a hard-fought away win on Sunday.
The win took them third in the table, just one point behind second-placed Real Madrid and seven behind leaders Barcelona.
Simeone said his side had not let Wednesday's last-gasp 2-1 win over Paris-Saint Germain in the Champions League go to their heads as he praised their defensive work.
"The players made a huge effort and worked hard after our game in Paris; it wasn't easy to get away from all the praise they got and work with humility to defend all the crosses that Mallorca make in every game," Simeone said at a post-match press conference.
"In football you always live for today, as in life; what came before, what you enjoyed yourself, what you did... they are just memories. You have to deliver it here and now, it's the reality of life, the day to day.
"In the first half we lacked more collective play, in the second half it was different, we competed better in the opposition's half and after the goal we had our chances to go out with a bigger win."
Simeone heaped particular praise on Alvarez, adding: "I don't follow their numbers and I don't care about it but I love him.
"He has personality, class, humility, hard work and goals. Let's hope he continues in this vein of form because that's what we were hoping for.
"I don't dwell on results but in the last few games I can see a clear idea. We won a Copa del Rey match, then in LaLiga against Las Palmas, at PSG on Wednesday and today once again we gave joy to our fans, which is what it's all about."
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