"Lightning strike in just 80 seconds" Lee Kang-in, tops chance creation + dazzling passes shine... 'Baena's precious winning goal' ATM, narrow 1-0 win over aespa뇰

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Lee Kang-in (25), forward for Atletico Madrid, put in a strong performance but failed to record an attacking point.

Atletico secured a 1-0 away victory over aespa뇰 in the Round 9 match of the 2026~2027 Spanish La Liga held at RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, at 9 p.m. (KST) on the 17th, thanks to Alex Baena's winning goal scored late in the game.

Atletico, which extended its unbeaten streak in official matches to six wins, maintained second place in the league with 22 points (7 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss), trailing leader Barcelona (24 points). aespa뇰 sat in 12th place with 8 points (2 wins, 2 draws, 5 losses).

Manager Diego Simeone deployed a 4-4-2 formation. Lee Kang-in was positioned just behind the front two of Ademola Lookman and Jonathan David, performing the role of an attacking midfielder. Morten Hjulmand, Pablo Barrios, and Giuliano Simeone formed the midfield line. The back four consisted of Dani Martinez, David Hancko, Cristian Romero, and Marc Pubill. Jan Oblak donned the goalkeeper gloves.

Lee Kang-in fired a threatening shot just 1 minute and 20 seconds after kickoff. Inside the penalty box, Lee Kang-in surged forward to shoot with his left foot after David passed the ball back, but it narrowly missed to the left of the goal frame. Having missed the chance for the opening goal, Lee Kang-in briefly covered his face, swallowing his disappointment.

Lee Kang-in delivered a second threatening shot. In the 19th minute of the first half, after receiving the ball near the center of the opponent's territory, Lee Kang-in executed a rapid dribble before firing a low, driven long-range shot with his left foot, which was saved by the diving opposing goalkeeper.

Atletico led the flow of the game, holding ball possession at roughly 8:2 up to the halfway line and seeing Lee Kang-in, David, and Simeone take shots in succession. In contrast, aespa뇰 set up a five-back formation and dropped their LINE low, focusing on defense.

Lee Kang-in shone not only with his shots but also with his passing. In the 29th minute of the first half, he threaded a precise through ball toward Simeone, who was making a run into the space behind the defense, but Simeone's touch was too long and he was tackled by a defender.

Lee Kang-in, who had been actively involved in defending, received a yellow card. In the 43rd minute of the first half, on the right flank of Atletico's own territory, Lee Kang-in brought down Brian Zaragoza, who was driving forward, with his hand. The referee immediately produced a yellow card.

The first half ended 0-0, with Atletico dominating but failing to create an opening goal.

Unlike the active first half, Atletico failed to create significant opportunities in the early stages of the second half. Held back by aespa뇰's low defensive LINE, they continued a somewhat frustrating flow without notable shots.

Amid this, Atletico produced a threatening shot, but Lee Kang-in's assist was unfortunately nullified. In the 17th minute of the second half, Lee Kang-in flicked Julian Alvarez's pass with his heel to Yorense. Yorense then controlled the ball and curled it with his right foot, but it struck the top of the goal frame. Immediately after, Lee Kang-in was substituted off for Baena, ending his match.

Without Lee Kang-in, Atletico pressed until the late stages of the second half, and the winning goal finally arrived near the end of the game. Baena, who had come on as a substitute for Lee Kang-in, tore open the net with a powerful right-footed shot from near the arc circle in the 44th minute of the second half.

The match concluded with Atletico's narrow 1-0 victory, sealed by Baena's precious winning goal.

According to football statistics specialist 'FootMob', Lee Kang-in played for approximately 62 minutes, recording two shots and a team-high three chance creations across both sides. His pass success rate reached 93% (41 out of 44 attempts). FootMob awarded Lee Kang-in a rating of 7.5, placing him among the top-rated players on his team.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original