Atletico Madrid 3 Osasuna 0: Carrasco bags brace for dominant hosts
Atletico Madrid cruised to victory over Osasuna in LaLiga as Yannick Carrasco scored twice at Vicente Calderon on Saturday.
Antoine Griezmann gave Atleti a 1-0 lead over the Premier League champions heading into the second leg in midweek, but the France star was afforded the luxury of watching on from the bench in one of five changes on Saturday.
Carrasco started both games, though, and he struck the opener after half an hour as the bottom-of-the-table visitors came under the cosh at the Vicente Calderon.
Osasuna had won their previous two matches to keep their slim survival hopes just about alive, but they never looked likely to register a third straight victory and Carrasco doubled Atleti's lead shortly after half-time before Filipe Luis added a fine third goal with just under half an hour remaining.
The game ended with an almost comedic air as forgotten man Alessio Cerci made his first LaLiga appearance in two and a half years before the hosts missed two penalties in as many minutes - Carrasco seeing his chance of a hat-trick pass with the first as home fans' calls for Cerci to take a kick fell on deaf ears.
Victory keeps Diego Simeone's men in third place, four points above Sevilla ahead of their clash with Valencia on Sunday.
Amid a slow start, Angel Correa failed to turn Atleti's first chance on target from Nicolas Gaitan's teasing low cross.
But the hosts soon built momentum and, after Correa and Thomas Partey had both seen strikes deflected wide, Carrasco broke the deadlock.
The Belgium international took up possession on the edge of the area, worked room for a shot and sent a pinpoint drive arrowing into the bottom-left corner.
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POSTED BY:OPUOMONI PRIYE
DATE:04/16/2017
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