PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) — When the referee whistled for the free kick just outside the area, Atletico Madrid forward Julián Álvarez quickly picked up the ball and moved in position to take the shot.
“When I saw the free kick, I told Rodri (Rodrigo De Paul) that I felt confident with the shot,” Álvarez said. “And it was a great goal.”
Álvarez, Atletico's main signing in the offseason, has not been lacking confidence lately. The Argentina forward curled in the free kick shot in the 15th minute for the first of his two goals in the team’s 6-0 rout of Brest in the Champions League on Tuesday — the team’s biggest ever away win in European competitions.
“We'll keep rotating who takes the free kicks,” said Álvarez, who also found the net in the 59th.
It was Álvarez’s seventh goal in the last 10 matches, and third in his last three games across all competitions. The 24-year-old had a slow start to his first season with Atletico, scoring twice in 10 matches.
“It was a matter of time before we started connecting well with each other,” said Álvarez, who joined Atletico after two seasons at Manchester City. “We have to stay on this path to keep improving.”
Ángel Correa also scored two goals for Atletico, with Marcos Llorente and Antoine Griezmann adding one each.
“We know that in this format of the competition we need to keep adding the three points and scoring goals," Álvarez said. "It's important to get the points and the goals.”
Atletico was sitting in 13th place in the 36-team league standings.
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