In the 24th round of Spanish La Liga, Atlético Madrid, coached by Argentine Diego Simeone, was defeated 3-0 by Rayo Vallecano. This loss extended the gap to the league leader, Real Madrid, to 15 points. Atlético had entered this match on the back of a resounding 4-0 victory over Barcelona in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final. Against Rayo, Atlético conceded the first goal in the 40th minute, scored by Fran Pérez. Just five minutes later, Rayo doubled their lead with a goal from Óscar Valentín. In the second half, at the 31-minute mark, Rayo sealed the victory with a goal from Senegalese forward Nobel Mendy. With this result, Atlético Madrid's deficit to Real Madrid grew to 15 points, leaving them in fourth place. Argentine players Nahuel Molina, Nicolás González, and Thiago Almada started the match, while Julián Álvarez came on as a substitute. Juan Musso and Giuliano Simeone did not get any playing time.
