Athletic Bilbao produced a dominant second-half display to defeat Atletico Madrid 3-0 in La Liga on Saturday, handing Diego Simeone’s side their first defeat of the season.
Nico Williams, Robert Navarro and Oihan Sancet were on target as Athletic secured an emphatic victory at San Mames.
The result marked Athletic’s second consecutive win under new manager Edin Terzic after they opened the campaign with two defeats.
Atletico started brightly and came close to taking the lead in the third minute when Lee Kang-In’s effort struck the post after the visitors opened up the home defence.
Unai Simon was also called into action, making a save from Alex Baena as Atletico looked to break the deadlock.
Athletic threatened through Sancet, who fired narrowly wide, while Pablo Barrios went even closer for Atletico when his effort struck the post before the interval.
However, the game changed dramatically immediately after the restart.
Nico Williams put Athletic ahead in the 46th minute after Inaki Williams’ deflected effort fell into his path, allowing the younger Williams to finish from close range.
Just two minutes later, Navarro doubled the advantage after being played through by Inaki Williams before calmly finding the net.
Simeone responded by making several substitutions, including introducing Julian Alvarez, who had only recently returned from illness.
The Argentine striker, however, struggled to influence proceedings as Athletic maintained control.
Sancet completed the rout in the 90th minute, finishing from close range after a blocked cross fell kindly to him.
The victory moves Athletic forward under Terzic, while Atletico will have to regroup after a disappointing performance that exposed their defensive frailties in the second half.
