Atletico floored by Espanyol's late double in Laliga

The Catalan based side overturn a first half freekick goal by Julian Alvarez to shock the bigger team

Atletico Madrid's Giuliano Simeone in action with Espanyol's Jose Salinas - LaLiga - Espanyol v Atletico Madrid - RCDE Stadium, Cornella de Llobregat, Spain - Aug 17, 2025. Atletico Madrid's Giuliano Simeone in action with Espanyol's Jose Salinas REUTERS/Bruna Casas

Atletico Madrid started with a 2-1 defeat at Espanyol in LaLiga on Sunday as the hosts overturned Julian Alvarez’s opener with late goals from substitutes Miguel Rubio and Pere Milla.

Alvarez showed his quality in the 37th minute, curling a superb free kick into the top corner to give Atletico the lead after Espanyol's Leandro Cabrera had pushed Conor Gallagher.

The Argentine came close again in the second half when he collected the ball inside the box, skipped past two defenders and fired a low shot against the bar.

The hosts levelled in the 73rd when a long set-piece dropped into the box behind the defence, allowing Rubio to race onto the ball and slide it past goalkeeper Jan Oblak.

Six minutes from time, Milla scored a spectacular winner, meeting a cross with a diving header that arched over Oblak and nestled inside the far post to complete the turnaround.