Atlético Madrid look on course to reach the Europa League final following a 4-2 home win against Valencia. The hosts are seven points behind their opponents in the league, but that form didn’t seem to count for much at the Vicente Calderón, where a steady stream of second-half shots overwhelmed an unimpressive Los Che side.
Atlético Madrid Vs. Valencia, 2012 Europa League Semifinals: Final Score 4-2 Atlético, Falcao Inspires Thrashing
The opening spell was much tighter, and although Atlético struck first, they did so in rather strange fashion, with Radamel Falcao nodding home a cutback that Valencia's defence appeared to assume had gone over the byline. The visitors were very much in the tie and came roaring back with a goal of their own in first-half stoppage time when Adil Rami flicked on a corner for Jonas to tap in at the far post.
They say that just before halftime is a bad time to concede, but the hosts showed no signs of a wobble and came out firing as soon as Craig Thomson sounded the restart. It took five minutes for Atlético to regain their lead, thanks to a mix-up in the Valencia defence, which saw Miranda left unmarked on a free kick and gave the defender an easy header past Diego Alves to make it 2-1.
Adrian scored shortly thereafter with a neat run and cool finish, but the goal that really killed off this match (and probably tie) was Falcao's second, a screamer from outside the box that bounced off the bottom of the crossbar on its way into the goal. Valencia looked like they were going to melt away under a flurry of good chances, but in the fourth minute of injury time, the visitors grabbed a corner and then struck back via Ricardo Costa, following a slip from Thibaut Courtois.
A two-goal lead is nothing to sneeze at as far as Atlético are concerned, but they’ll be peeved that they allowed that last-minute Costa goal -- it could be a vital one for Valencia, who now only have to win by two at the Mestalla. Still, Atlético will be the happier side today.
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