Pablo Barrios Brace Leads Atletico Madrid Past Seattle 3-1
PABLO Barrios' brace lifted Atletico Madrid to a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Sounders on Thursday, getting the Spanish side's Group B campaign back on track.
Axel Witsel also scored as Atletico rebounded to victory at Seattle's home field after they began their FIFA Club World Cup campaign losing 4-0 to Paris Saint-Germain in Southern California.
The result pulls the Rojiblancos even on points with PSG and Botafogo, who will meet in their second match later on Thursday.
Albert Rusnak scored after halftime for Seattle, which fell to the brink of elimination despite playing a second consecutive game before its home supporters.
The Sounders' knockout-phase hopes will officially be quashed if PSG wins or draws against Botafogo.
The 22-year-old Barrios scored early in each half for the first brace of his senior club career.
Barrios' first goal put Atletico in front in the 11th minute to cap a furious start for the Spanish club.
Giuliano Simeone did much of the work, running onto a throughball into the right edge of the penalty area, cutting back to elude a defender and then dragging a low cross toward the penalty arc. Barrios met it in stride and hit a first-time, right-footed shot that rattled the underside of the crossbar on its way in.
Barrios' second in the 55th minute was simpler, as he was permitted time and space to hit a half-volley past goalkeeper Stefan Frei after Seattle's failure to clear Marcos Llorente's long throw from the right.
Before halftime, Atletico had an apparent chance to double their lead from the penalty spot taken away after referee Yael Falcon Perez reversed his initial decision after a video review.
The sides then traded goals in the first five minutes of the second half. In the 47th, Witsel headed home from inside the 6-yard box in the resulting scramble after Frei pushed Llorente's initial half-volley onto the crossbar. In the 50th, Rusnak scored from a similar range on a deflected shot after Atletico's failure to deal with Seattle's initial ball into the box.
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