Alvarez nets double as Altetico wins comfortably
Julian Alvarez netted a first-half double before Angel Correa came off the bench to add gloss to the scoreline for Atletico Madrid, who took a comfortable 3-0 away from a toothless Valencia.
Former Manchester City forward Alvarez struck on the rebound in the 12th minute to open the scoring.
He then headed home an Antoine Griezmann cross in the 30th minute to extend Atleti's lead.
Simeone's side took its foot off the pedal after the break but managed to score a third through Correa at the end of a quick counter-attack in the 86th minute.
Substitute Conor Gallagher set up Correa's goal, and turned in an impressive performance overall from the bench, creating a team-high three chances while completing nine of his 10 attempted passes in the final third.
Alvarez, who also scored in the reverse fixture against Valencia, which was another 3-0 win in September, was the star of the show, though.
He has now netted in back-to-back away matches, having also struck against city rival Real Madrid last time out on the road.
Simeone heaped praise on Alvarez after the game, saying he always knew the Argentinean shared the club's DNA.
Reflecting on Atleti's decision to sign Alvarez, Simeone said: "Although he still couldn't reflect with facts what we were looking for when we signed him, I said I was sure he had Atleti's DNA.
"That's why we were so excited then and we still are now. Especially because of the way he does things.
"He won everything by the age of 25 – the World Cup with Argentina, the Champions League and the Premier League with Manchester City, and he continues in the vein of humility that makes him different from everyone else."
Leader Barcelona is one point clear of Atletico at the summit, with Real Madrid two points further back in third ahead of hosting Girona on Monday (AEDT).
