Julián Alvarez lit up the Metropolitano with a hat-trick that dragged Atlético Madrid past Rayo Vallecano in a breathless 3-2 derby win. For Diego Simeone, it was relief as much as celebration, with his side’s fragile habit of throwing away leads almost haunting them again.
Softfootball predicted Atletico to score goals in the game preview, and the Madrid-based team struck early. Just 15 minutes in, Alvarez connected sweetly with Marcos Llorente’s cross, volleying past Augusto Batalla to send the home crowd into raptures. But any comfort was laced with nerves; Simeone’s men had surrendered leads in four of their last five league matches. The need for a cushion grew when Alvarez blazed over from close range after fine work by Nahuel Molina.
Rayo rarely threatened in the first half, yet when they did, it was spectacular. On the stroke of half-time, Pep Chavarría unleashed a thunderous strike from distance that arrowed beyond Jan Oblak. Silence swept around the Metropolitano as they witnessed another Atlético lead gone.
The second half brought more danger. Isi Palazón forced Oblak into a sharp save before Simeone turned to youth, sending on Giuliano Simeone and Nico González. Atlético improved, but Rayo weren’t finished. Iván Balliu tried his luck from range before Álvaro García produced a moment of class, rounding Oblak and slotting into an empty net following a beautiful pass from Isi Palazón.
Staring at defeat, Atlético needed a spark and Alvarez delivered. Barely a minute after García’s strike, the Argentine pounced on a spilled cross to make it 2-2. Then came the killer blow, a fierce left-footed drive from outside the box that ripped into the net. Just last time out, Julian Alvarez was lamenting being subbed off in the 1-1 draw against Mallorca, and now he bagged a hat trick and single-handedly got all three points for Atleti.
Atletico Madrid posted a video on the team’s official X account of the celebratory scenes as soon as Julian Alvarez’s bullet crashed into the back of the net.
Watch the video below:
It wasn’t perfect, but it was dramatic. Atlético climb to eighth with only their second league win of the season, while Rayo’s wait for a victory stretches to four matches. On another night, the visitors might have stolen the headlines. Instead, it belonged to Alvarez.
