It took until stoppage time at the end of the second half before Valencia finally beat Thibaut Courtois, though Hélder Postiga's last-gasp equaliser was richly deserved. Los Che dominated their fifth round Copa del Rey first leg against Atlético Madrid, and are unfortunate to only be level ahead of next week's return fixture at the Vicente Calderón.
Valencia vs. Atlético Madrid, 2014 Copa del Rey: Final score 1-1, Los Che net last-gasp equaliser
Valencia dominated the first leg of their Copa del Rey tie with Atlético Madrid, though needed a 93rd minute equaliser to rescue a draw.
Manuel Queimadelos Alonso
Valencia looked impressive right from the first whistle; playing patiently through midfield with short, quick interchanges. However, they struggled to create a clear-cut chance against a typically disciplined Atléti defence, with Daniel Parejo going closest from the edge of the area just after ten minutes in.
Gradually Atléti began to assert themselves on the match, and created the opening half’s best opportunity just after the half-hour mark. Raúl García found some room in the area and lashed the ball towards the top corner, though Valencia stopper Vicente Guaita managed to palm the ball behind to keep the scores level.
The hosts did well to restrict Atléti’s chances on the break, and weren’t sliced open by one of Los Colchoneros’ classic counter-attacks until a minute before halftime. Fortunately for them, Adrián misjudged the weight of the crucial final pass, meaning on-form striker Diego Costa was dispossessed just as he was about to pull the trigger.
However, Valencia continued in the ascendency after the restart, and came close to opening the scoring five minutes into the second half. After buying himself some space in the box Bernat rifled a shot low towards the far post, though Thibaut Courtois got down to make his first real save of the match.
Considering their recent struggles in the league, Valencia continued to look surprisingly comfortable, though couldn’t turn their domination of possession into anything meaningful. They were made to pay just inside the final 20 minutes, when Guaita’s botched punch was nodded in by García against the run of play.
Valencia should've equalised with eight minutes left, though substitute Sergio Canales skied from point-blank range after Soufiane Feghouli's effort was parried into his path by Courtois. The Belgian stopper made amends for his error just a minute later, diving to keep out Feghouli's powerful attempt.
Eventually the equaliser did come -- though not until the 93rd minute. A deep cross from the left was nodded back across the face of goal by Feghouli, leaving Hélder Postiga with a routine finish. The draw was the least Valencia deserved, though with Atléti having won every single one of their league games at home this season, their chances of success in next weekend’s return fixture seem slim.
Valencia: Guaita; Guardado, Mathieu, Costa, Pereira; Fuego, Parejo; Bernat (Canales 73’), Míchel (Feghouli 63’), Fede (Piatti 77’); Postiga.
Goals: Postiga (93’).
Atlético Madrid: Courtois; Felipe Luis, Alderweireld, Miranda, Juanfran; García, Gabi, Guilavogui (Arda 59’), Koke (Tiago 81’); Diego Costa, Adrián (Rodríguez 67’).
Goals: García (72’).
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