Angel Correa scored in the first half and Antoine Griezmann added two goals in the second as Atletico Madrid defeated Rayo Vallecano de Madrid 3-0 to advance to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey with a 4-1 aggregate victory on Thursday.
Correa scored with a curling right-footed strike from just inside the area in the 40th minute, and Griezmann netted from close range in the 80th and in a counterattack in injury time.
Atletico have won 13 of their past 15 games, while conceding only five goals.
Photo: EPA
Also on Thursday, Gary Neville’s Valencia secured their spot in the quarter-finals with an easy 3-0 win at Granada, advancing 7-0 on aggregate.
Atletico and Rayo had drawn 1-1 in the first leg last week, but the hosts were in control from the start at the Estadio Vicente Calderon.
Correa’s powerful shot flew over the goalkeeper and ricocheted off the crossbar before going in to give Atletico the lead. Griezmann flicked the ball home after a cross was deflected near the goal line, and followed up by rounding the goalkeeper and shooting into an empty net just before the final whistle.
“Rayo did well in the first 20 minutes, but we switched to a 4-4-2 and were able to create more chances,” Atletico coach Diego Simeone said.
The win came hours after FIFA announced it was banning Atletico and Real Madrid from signing players in the next two transfer windows because of breach in rules when registering players under the age of 18. The clubs can still sign players in the current window that ends this month, but after that they will have to wait until after the 2016-2017 season. Both teams said they would appeal.
Valencia easily secured their spot in the quarter-finals with goals by Wilfried Zahibo in the 42nd, Paco Alcacer in the 63rd and Pablo Piatti in the 84th.
“I’m happy overall with the performance,” Neville said. “We took advantage of our chances and scored the goals we needed.”
The quarter-finals are also to feature defending champions Barcelona, last year’s runner-ups Athletic Bilbao, Sevilla, UD Las Palmas, RC Celta de Vigo and second-division club Mirandes. The home-and-away games are expected to take place on Wednesday and Jan. 27.
“Most of the teams are in the top half of the La Liga standings,” Simeone said. “Any of the opponents will be complicated.”
Real Madrid were eliminated early in the tournament for using an ineligible player.
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