Griezmann’s free-kick goal sends Atletico Madrid to the Copa del Rey quarterfinals

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MADRID (AP) — Antoine Griezmann scored with a well-placed free-kick shot to give Atletico Madrid a 1-0 road win over second-division club Deportivo La Coruña and a spot in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey on Tuesday.

Griezmann broke the deadlock in the 61st minute, finding the right upper corner with a curling left-foot strike.

“I didn’t know where to hit it, whether to the side of the goalkeeper or over him, and instead of shooting hard, I tried to place it over the wall.”

It was the fifth goal in the last six matches for the 34-year-old Griezmann.

“Griezmann is a game-changer,” Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. “He still has that magic touch of wanting to compete and help the team.”

The result ended a two-game skid for Atletico. Simeone’s team was coming off a 2-1 loss to Real Madrid in the semifinals of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia and a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad in the Spanish league.

Atletico sits in fourth place at the halfway point of the Spanish league season, 11 points behind leader Barcelona.

The match was stopped for a few minutes near the 70th minute after Deportivo goalkeeper Germán Parreño sustained a cut on his mouth following a collision with Griezmann. The goalkeeper stayed on the game after team doctors sutured his lips on the field.

Other Copa results

In a match between first-division teams, Real Sociedad eliminated Osasuna 4-3 in a penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw in regulation and extra time.

Osasuna took a two-goal lead — Jon Moncayola scored in the fourth minute and the second goal came with an own-goal by Mikel Oyarzabal in the 17th — but the hosts rallied with Beñat Turrientes finding the net in the 75th and Igor Zubeldia forcing extra time with a goal two minutes into stoppage time.

Oyarzabal missed a penalty kick in extra time.

Athletic Bilbao, playing with 10 men from the 56th because of a red card to Aitor Paredes, edged past second-division team Cultural Leonesa 4-3, with Unai Gómez scoring the winner by converting a penalty kick late in the first half of extra time.

The teams drew 3-3 in regulation in a game that featured a thrilling first half in which each team scored three times. The hosts led in three occasions but allowed Athletic to equalize every time.

On Wednesday, Real Madrid visits second-division club Albacete, while Barcelona is at Racing — also in the second tier — on Thursday.

The round of 16 is played in single elimination games.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer