Ademola Lookman started as Atletico Madrid returned to winning ways with a 3-0 victory away to Real Sociedad in Spanish La Liga on Sunday.
The Nigeria international remained on the pitch until the 76th minute, with Atletico Madrid scoring all three of their goals after his departure.
Real Sociedad had the greater share of possession, controlling 54% of the ball, and also recorded more attacks and corners. However, Atletico Madrid were more effective in front of goal, taking their chances during a decisive late spell.
The visitors broke the deadlock in the 84th minute after Alejandro Grimaldo converted a penalty.
Jonathan David doubled Atletico Madrid’s advantage in the 90th minute, before Giuliano Simeone completed the scoring in the fifth minute of added time, with the third goal arriving in the 95th minute.
The result was a valuable response for Atletico Madrid following a difficult run that had included a 3-0 defeat by Athletic Bilbao and a 2-1 loss to Liverpool in the Champions League.
It moved Atletico Madrid up to fourth place with 10 points from five matches. They are level on points with Alaves and Sevilla.
For Real Sociedad, the defeat leaves them 12th in the table with seven points from six games. Their latest loss continues a start to the season in which they have struggled to establish consistency.
Lookman had been named in the starting line-up as he continued to feature under manager Diego Simeone. His withdrawal came before Atletico Madrid’s three-goal finish, although the team had been unable to turn their possession and attacking opportunities into goals before the closing stages.
The victory gives Atletico Madrid momentum after consecutive defeats against Athletic Bilbao and Liverpool, while Real Sociedad will need to improve their results after another match in which control of the ball did not translate into a positive outcome.