Julián Álvarez fires Atletico Madrid past Deportivo in narrow win

Atletico Madrid did not need much to beat Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday. Julián Alvarez scored the only goal in a 1-0 win at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, with his finish in the 48th minute proving enough to settle Atletico Madrid vs Deportivo La Coruna. It was his first goal of the season at the Metropolitano, and it kept Atlético's league surge moving.

Álvarez's current run

The game fit the way Álvarez has been playing. He scored in his last two appearances, including the midweek Champions League match in Stuttgart, and has three goals across his last five games. The 8.2 rating attached to this performance was the highest in the match, which lines up with the feeling that he is carrying more of the final-third burden than earlier in the campaign.

That is the clearest reason Atlético left with another narrow win. Atletico Madrid have now won their last five La Liga matches and sit second with 22 points from nine games, with a +11 goal difference. The league table is tight enough that every slim win counts, and this one kept them moving at a strong pace.

Atlético's title chase

There was also a wider title angle to the result. One source said Atlético temporarily moved four points ahead of Real Madrid, while another framed the position differently, saying the win helped them stay close to Barcelona as the Clásico played out. Either way, the outcome was the same, Atlético banked three more points and Álvarez delivered the decisive moment again.

The margin was small, but the value was obvious. Atlético did enough, and Álvarez did what they have started to expect from him at the sharp end of matches.