Lee's Dream Debut Powers Atlético to Victory Over Málaga

Atlético Madrid had to grind. For 45 minutes at least, it was all toil and no spark.

Without Julián Álvarez, Diego Simeone’s side laboured through a flat first half against a disciplined Málaga, scraping together an expected goals tally of just 0.10 from four efforts. They passed, they probed, they ran. They never really threatened.

Simeone summed it up bluntly later: the first half was “running”. No real scoring chances, no cutting edge. The Metropolitano grew restless.

Then, on 57 minutes, he ripped it up.

Triple change, total shift

Lee, Baena and Giuliano Simeone stepped off the bench together, and the match flipped almost instantly. The tempo rose. Atlético started to win second balls, to pin Málaga deeper, to play with a touch of arrogance that had been missing.

The pressure finally told, and it came from the new boy.

Lee, on his competitive debut, announced himself with a superb curling strike, bending the ball beyond the keeper and into the far corner. One chance, one ruthless finish, and suddenly the night felt very different.

It was more than just a goal. Lee injected control and imagination, finishing with joint-team-high numbers for chances created and tackles won. He worked, he bit into duels, and he picked passes between the lines. For Simeone, that blend is gold.

The goal carried a slice of history too: at 25 years and 181 days, Lee became Atlético’s third-youngest debut scorer in La Liga in the 21st century. Not a bad way to introduce yourself.

Baena seals it in style

Once Atlético broke through, Málaga’s resistance began to crack. The hosts pushed on, and the substitutes kept dictating the rhythm.

Baena then stepped up to deliver the final blow, smashing in a spectacular free-kick to make it 2-0 and kill any lingering tension. From a match that had looked stubborn and sticky, Atlético suddenly cruised to the finish line with two “great goals”, as Simeone put it.

For the Argentine coach, the story of the night was written by his bench.

“We try to start the game with the boys who are in the best condition to compete,” he told reporters, before pointing to the transformation after the changes. In his words, the second-half introductions gave Atlético “a leap in quality” and “the leap we needed” to win a game that was anything but straightforward.

Lee’s statement start

Lee, who arrived with a CV that already includes Valencia, Mallorca and PSG, sounded relieved as much as delighted. He stressed how important these opening matches are for his adaptation and for a team still searching for rhythm after a disrupted pre-season.

“The first games were very important. We lacked training. It was very important to get the win,” he said, quick to credit the collective effort.

For him, the platform was built before he even stepped on the pitch.

“The whole team has done a great job. Thanks to the work of the first half we were able to get the victory. We continue to work hard. The rhythm is missing, but with work we will improve individually and collectively.”

Atlético walked off with three points, a clean sheet, and a debutant already embraced by the stands. If this is Lee still searching for rhythm, what happens when he and this team finally hit full speed?