GiveMeSport
·23 September 2021
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·23 September 2021
Getafe took a surprise lead just before half-time in their home game against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday evening.
A rare error from Atletico shot-stopper Jan Oblak allowed Getafe to go into the break with the advantage. The giant Slovenian spilled a cross - and Stefan Mitrovic was on hand to head the ball into the net.
The hosts, who were without a point all season going into the fixture, were understandably keen to hold on to the lead they had been gifted - and resorted to some proper s***house tactics in the second period to try and do so.
Having been reduced to 10 men after midfielder Carles Alena was sent off for raking his studs down the back of the leg of Atletico's Matheus Cunha on 74 minutes, Getafe's task of protecting their lead for the final stages of the game became even tougher.
Naturally, in this sort of scenario, the side with the scoreline ascendency is going to try and slow down play in order to eke out a result.
Getafe defender Jaime Mata, though, saw an opportunity to stop the game entirely after being denied a free-kick he felt he deserved - and had no shame in taking full advantage of the situation.
The 32-year-old had tumbled beyond the dead-ball line and was appealing for a decision in his favour. When he realised he wasn't going to get his way, Mata quickly scrambled to his feet and leapt back on to the field of play - before promptly feigning an injury to ensure that the match would have to be halted anyway.
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The best part of the whole sequence is the visual of Atletico striker Luis Suarez - himself famous for having indulged in plenty of similar behaviour in the past - rushing to complain to the referee about the delay.
You can check out Mata's performance below.
It would be Suarez who would have the last laugh for the reigning La Liga champions, however. A late brace from the Uruguayan - including a stoppage-time winner - saw Atletico pick up all three points.
Getafe, who still sit bottom of the pile in the Spanish top-flight, were left wondering what might have been - with Mata's underhanded tactics not proving enough for them to sneak their way to their first points of the season.