James Rodriguez claimed his first goal for Real Madrid but it wasn’t enough to give his team a Super Cup advantage as Raul Garcia levelled late on for gutsy Atletico.
The Colombian ace – a €80m (Dh390m) summer arrival from Monaco – struck with nine minutes remaining but Garcia grabbed a priceless away goal while Real were also left concerned with Cristiano Ronaldo’s fitness after the Portuguese star limped off at half-time.
With Xabi Alonso and new signing Toni Kroos controlling possession, Real dominated the opening exchanges as Gareth Bale combined nicely with Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo but sent his shot well wide.
Atletico striker Mario Mandzukic, a summer signing from Bayern Munich, had a sight of goal shortly before the quarter-hour mark after Sergio Ramos and Pepe jumped into each other when attempting to clear, and the Atletico striker hit his volley well but too close to Iker Casillas.
The first clear chance fell to Atletico a minute later when another mix-up between Ramos and Pepe allowed Saul Nigeuz to burst through the middle, but the young midfielder – who spent last season on loan at Rayo Vallecano – lacked power with his shot to trouble Casillas.
Madrid keeper Casillas, placed under the microscope as Keylor Navas watched from the sidelines, gifted another opportunity to Atletico with a poor punch but Mandzukic failed to get the necessary power on his first time volley and the Spaniard saved easily.
Ronaldo rose high to head wide a left-wing cross from Bale as Real’s front line continued to regularly interchange positions, and half-time arrived with the deadlock intact.
Despite the removal of Ronaldo, both teams looked more threatening in the opening stages of the second period with Bale cutting inside to force a good parry from Miguel Angel Moya before the visitors forced a series of corners.
The game then turned scrappy with regular stoppages for free-kicks preventing either team from establishing any rhythm, something which particularly suited Atletico’s disciplined approach.
Infographic stats from the match
An ongoing skirmish between Mandzukic and Ramos, which saw both players booked, typified the combative nature of the action as Real grew increasingly frustrated, but the home team should have gone ahead with 20 minutes remaining.
James Rodriguez was fouled on the edge of the area, Bale stepped up to fire a fierce free-kick which forced Moya into an awkward save and the loose ball dropped invitingly towards onrushing Kroos but the German midfielder badly mishit high over the top.
A goalless draw looked inevitable until a half-cleared cross from Dani Carvajal dropped to James, whose stabbed low effort deflected off Cristian Ansaldi to give Moya no chance.
But Atletico snatched an equaliser when Garcia was left unmarked to stab home a corner from close range, giving the champions the advantage ahead of Friday night’s second leg at the Vicente Caleron.
Man of the match:
Gareth Bale
Continued his fine early season form with another lively performance against Atletico’s outstanding defence. Bale was easily his team’s biggest threat and looks in prime shape for an excellent second campaign in Spain.
Verdict
A new season but the same old story as Atletico showed defensive resilience and responded courageously after falling behind to scramble a leveller, while Real were once again left to rue their greatest weakness: defending setpieces. The marking – or lack of – for Garcia’s equaliser was inexcusable. Atleti will be delighted with this result against a Real team lacking fluency while the
extent of Ronaldo’s injury, and his involvement in the second leg, remains to be seen.
