Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Miguel Ángel Moyà had himself one helluva first half. The second-choice keeper behind Jan Oblak kept the first half scoreless with an incredible save on Sevilla’s Sergio Escudero during their Copa del Rey quarterfinal first leg. But the Atletico Madrid vs Sevilla match turned when a Moyà howler helped propel the visitors to a 2-1 victory in Spain’s capital city on Wednesday, Atleti’s first loss to a Spanish side at the new Wanda.
Moyà and his counterpart Sergio Rico were stellar in the first half. The Sevilla keeper was beaten on by Diego Costa on a goal that was called back for a foul, but was equal to the Atleti striker in the 20th minute with this sprawling save. Rico also denied Costa on a one-on-one opportunity in the 39th minute.
Moyà was even better. He stopped Joaquin Correa one-on-one in the 28th minute and made the save of the match (day? week? year?) when he somehow kept Escudero from scoring an epic long-range goal in the 41st minute.
The Atletico Madrid vs Sevilla match went to halftime tied 0-0 not because the attackers were off their game but because the goalkeepers were just that damn good.
HT: Goalless at the break, but not for a lack of trying - @atletienglish and @SevillaFC_ENG have their goalkeepers to thank for their respective clean sheets. #AtletiSevillaFC #CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/IvTcrqGSDA
— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
Moya was brilliant in the first half for Atletico Madrid vs Sevilla. Not so much in the second half. Photo: @Triburojiblanca | Twitter
But things changed in the second half. Diego Costa scored because of course he scored, giving Atletico a 1-0 advantage.
GOOOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!!!
@diegocosta breaks the deadlock and resists the urge to jump into the crowd. 1-0 in @atletienglish's favor. #AtletiSevillaFC #CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/5aCuuGsJ3J— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
4 - Diego Costa has been directly involved in four goals in his four games in all competitions since his Atletico return (three goals and one assist). Panther. pic.twitter.com/osdLEWD6rH
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) January 17, 2018
Moyà will wish the match had just ended there. Instead, he committed a horrible blunder that ultimately sparked Sevilla to victory.
The key moment came when Manchester City reject Jesus Navas sent in a cross that deflected off Lucas Hernandez. The ball appeared to be heading harmlessly out of bounds, but Moyà, perhaps not wanting to give up a corner or maybe just misjudging the flight of the ball, parried the cross into the back of his own net.
HOWLER ALERT
Miguel Angel Moya palms a deflected Jesus Navas cross into his own net to give @SevillaFC_ENG a much-appreciated away goal. 1-1. #AtletiSevillaFC #CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/e0ySNcj87u— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
The last angle from this video shows how bad Moyà’s mistake was.
The goal gave Sevilla the boost it needed to go on and win the match in the 88th minute when Correa was slipped in and dinked a shot past a dejected Moyà.
GOOOOOOAAAAALLLLLL!!!!!
Joaquin Correa holds his nerve to put @SevillaFC_ENG in the driver's seat. 2-1 to Montella's men! #AtletiSevillaFC #CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/xE4yjUsHoA— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
Moyà was named the team’s No. 1 for the cup competition and hadn’t allowed a goal in the Copa del Rey before Wednesday. But you wonder if he’ll still be in goal for the return leg Jan. 23 in Seville.
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