Atletico Madrid 3-1 Valencia Player Ratings: Suarez scores

10:54pm on Sunday 24th January 2021
By Paul Macdonald

Atletico Madrid fought back from going a goal down to defeat Valencia 3-1 at the Wanda Metropolitano and retain their advantage at the top of La Liga.

Atletico Madrid 3-1 Valencia: Player Ratings, Match Stats, Player Stats

So who were the best and worst players on the pitch?

✔️ GOOD PERFORMANCE

Thomas Lemar: 7.4

From a position where it seemed his Atletico Madrid career was all but over, Lemar has enjoyed a renaissance in recent weeks and was once again superb here.

The France international set up Joao Felix's equaliser with a neat pass, but as well as attacking he put in some excellent work defensively, winning 2/2 tackles and five of his seven duels, while making two interceptions and four recoveries.

Diego Simeone is known to respect attacking players who do good work at both ends of the pitch, and Lemar continues to prove to his boss that he is capable of both.

Luis Suarez: 6.5

Suarez remains a forward who only really gets involved in the game when it requires him to put it in the net, and he netted a vital goal - once again. With the score at 1-1, he curled a brilliant effort into the far corner and gave his side a valuable lead, one they didn't squander.

⭐ STAR MAN

Joao Felix: 7.9

Felix had actually been going through a barren spell; he hadn't scored in La Liga since November though was working hard on his game every week.

But this was the type of performance that showed why Atleti spent the money on him. He scored the crucial leveller with an impudent finish to ease the goal burden on his shoulders.

And he played with more freedom afterwards. His run down the left took him to the edge of the area and allow him to roll in Suarez to curl his effort across goal and into the corner.

Beyond that he had three shots on goal, completed two dribbles and created one Big Chance for his team-mates. This team has played who step up when it counts - which is an ominous warning to Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Atletico Madrid 3-1 Valencia: Player Ratings, Match Stats, Player Stats