Conor Gallagher scored his first goal for Atletico Madrid during their 3-0 La Liga victory against Valencia.
The former Chelsea midfielder became the third-youngest English player to score in La Liga this century at 24 years and 222 days old.
In the 39th minute, Gallagher found himself inside the penalty area unmarked, and after collecting the ball from fellow midfielder Rodrigo De Paul, the England international calmly finished past goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili to give his side the lead at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Atletico signed Gallagher in the summer transfer window from Chelsea in a deal worth €42million (£35.8m, $54.7m), which included an undisclosed sell-on clause for the Stamford Bridge side. He signed a five-year contract that runs until 2029.
Gallagher found the net with a composed finish (Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
The move had previously stalled, leaving Gallagher in limbo despite agreeing on personal terms, travelling to Madrid, and undergoing a medical.
The delay was caused by the collapse of Samu Omorodion’s proposed transfer to Chelsea, which had impacted Gallagher’s departure as Atletico needed to raise funds through a sale to finalise the deal.
Gallagher then returned to the UK at Chelsea’s request. Once the west London side reached an agreement with their La Liga counterparts for Joao Felix, Gallagher was able to proceed with his transfer. He subsequently flew to Madrid to complete the move.
Having turned down three offers for a two-year contract extension with a club option for a third year, Chelsea decided to sell Gallagher to avoid the risk of losing him on a free transfer next summer.
The match against Valencia was Gallagher’s third appearance in an Atletico shirt.
Further goals from Antoine Griezmann and Julian Alvarez sealed a comfortable win for Diego Simeone’s side.
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As Gallagher wheeled away with his fist raised to celebrate his first La Liga goal, the feeling was that the Englishman has already been warmly welcomed into the Atletico family.
The Metropolitano crowd gleefully shouted his name when encouraged by the stadium announcer, having also cheered his regular contributions to a completely dominant Atletico display.
Starting on the left of a narrow midfield three in his home debut, Gallagher regularly drew applause from the crowd, whether snapping into tackles near half-way, cleverly linking with wing-back Samuel Lino, or breaking forward in support of No 9 Alexander Sorloth.
While the calmly taken goal made the headlines, the all-round display showed how Gallagher looks to have quickly fitted into Simeone’s system. When Simeone rang the changes at 2-0 up, he slotted-in comfortably on the right of the midfield three, helping his team see out a straightforward victory.
Bigger tests are to come, with RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Thursday, and Real Madrid at the Metropolitano in a fortnight’s time, but Gallagher already looks an important player for Atletico, and a big favourite with their fans.
(Top photo: Mateo Villalba/Getty Images)
