SEVILLE, Spain (AP) — Real Sociedad beat Atletico Madrid on penalties to win the Copa del Rey title on Saturday.
After the game finished 2-2 following extra time, Sociedad goalkeeper Unai Marrero saved shots by Alexander Sorloth and Julián Álvarez and Pablo Marín converted the last kick to clinch the shootout 4-3.
Sociedad needed 14 seconds and just three players to touch the ball directly after kickoff to take the lead through Ander Barrenetxea.
Ademola Lookman equalized for Diego Simeone’s side with a goal in the 19th minute, but a penalty by goalkeeper Juan Musso allowed Mikel Oyarzabal to restore Sociedad’s advantage in first-half injury time.
Álvarez stroked a shot into the right corner to make it 2-2 in the 83rd.
American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo took over Sociedad in December when it was two points above the relegation zone in the Spanish league. Four months later, the Basque Country club has won the cup and is in the upper half of the La Liga table.
Opta Statistics said Barrenetxea’s goal was the fastest ever in a Spanish cup final.
The opening goal against Atletico’s vaunted defense was about as simple as they come: ball to goalkeeper, long ball down the right flank, where Gonçalo Guedes was free to send in a cross for Ander Barrenetxea to head it home.
The sequence exposed a series of less-than-ideal defending. Neither Nahuel Molina nor Giuliano Simeone intercepted reachable balls; Matteo Ruggeri let the shorter Barrenetxea outjump him for the header; and goalkeeper Juan Musso perhaps could have made a more sprightly effort to stop the shot from bouncing past.
Lookman again proved the most-impactful winter signing by a Spanish side – his goal was his seventh for Atletico – when the former Atalanta forward received a pass from Antoine Griezmann just inside the area and sent a left-footed shot inside the post.
Oyarzabal went to the spot after Musso slammed into Guedes while disputing a high ball in the box. Oyarzabal lived up to his reputation as a penalty expert, slotting his try home. The Spain striker also scored a penalty for the only goal in the 2020 cup final against Athletic Bilbao.
Sociedad was in control and only minutes away from the title when Atletico finally mounted a good team move to unsettle Sociedad’s defense for the first time and set up Álvarez in the second half.
Musso made up for his earlier mistakes by making back-to-back saves in extra time. Otherwise, Atletico created several chances it couldn’t finish off to get the title-clinching goal.
Then it was Marrero’s turn to shine as he guessed right on the first two penalties by Atletico’s strikers.
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