Atlético Madrid's Defeat in Bilbao: Llorente Urges Álvarez to Deliver
Atlético Madrid walked into San Mamés unbeaten and walked out with questions all over the pitch. A 3-0 defeat to Athletic Bilbao didn’t just snap their start-of-season momentum – it exposed a team still trying to figure out how to use its most dangerous striker.
At the centre of it all: Julián Álvarez.
“We desperately need his goals”
Álvarez made his first appearance since the close of the summer window, when Atlético refused to negotiate his proposed move to Barcelona and kept him in Madrid. On Saturday, he was sent on in the second half with his side already two down, expected to rescue a game that had spun out of control in a matter of seconds.
He couldn’t. And Marcos Llorente didn’t hide how much the team is banking on him.
“Julián is a decisive player for us, and he knows that well,” Llorente told ESPN. “He will gradually gel with the team, and the sooner the better because we desperately need his goals, and we must support him so he returns to his 100% level as soon as possible.”
Those words carried the weight of the night. Atlético started without a recognised No. 9, with the coach opting for Álex Baena and Kang-in Lee in the advanced roles. Jonathan David, signed on loan on deadline day to strengthen the attack, stayed rooted to the bench.
The message was clear: Álvarez is still the reference point. Even when he starts among the substitutes.
Two minutes of chaos
For 45 minutes, Atlético looked alive. Competitive. In the game.
Then the second half started, and everything fell apart.
Nico Williams struck in the 46th minute. Robert Navarro added another in the 48th. Two punches in 120 seconds, and Atlético never recovered. Oihan Sancet’s late third only confirmed the collapse.
“You could say we lost the match in just 120 seconds,” defender Dávid Hancko admitted. “It was a very bad start to the second half, we lost concentration for two minutes and I don't know if we relaxed after the break. They were difficult moments, and perhaps it's good that this stumble happened early at the start of the season.”
Llorente went even stronger.
“We threw the match away in the first five minutes of the second half,” he said. “Those five minutes killed our ambition and afterwards we couldn't impose pressure or score a goal to unsettle the opponent. This should not happen again because we produced a good first half, and we must correct the mistakes and study the reasons for what happened.”
The anger was justified. The sense of waste, obvious.
Álvarez under the spotlight
Inside that chaos, all eyes drifted back to Álvarez. His introduction, with just over half an hour to play, came too late to change the result, but not too late to change the conversation around him.
Hancko, though, saw enough to underline his importance.
“It was clear that he was in good shape and wanted to take responsibility and make a difference,” the defender said. “Of course, a striker loses some balls against defensive blocks, but we saw those attacking flashes when he turned and shot with his left foot.”
Then came the line that will echo inside the dressing room.
“He makes a difference for us, and I am very happy that he stayed. The whole team supports him and stands behind him, we need him and I think he needs us too.”
That is the dynamic now: a club that blocked his exit, a squad that insists it is behind him, and a player who is being told – publicly – that his goals are non-negotiable for Atlético’s season.
Anfield on the horizon
There is no time to lick wounds. A brutal week is waiting.
Next stop: Anfield, to face Liverpool in the Champions League. After that, a trip to Real Sociedad in La Liga. Two high-intensity games, two hostile stadiums, zero margin for another mental blackout like the one in Bilbao.
Atlético’s leaders have already drawn the line. Concentration cannot drop. The second-half collapse “should not happen again,” as Llorente put it.
Now the question shifts from San Mamés to Anfield: when the lights go up and the noise hits, will Julián Álvarez finally step back into the role Atlético have demanded of him – and will his goals arrive in time to keep their season on track?
