Three lighters, a glass, a bag with something that looked like food, and a bottle are some of the objects that fell onto the field seconds after Militao scored the goal for Real Madrid against Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano. A rain of projectiles that unfolded around the 65th minute of the match, as stated by Diego Simeone after the game, "not for no reason, but for something."
That "something," for the Argentine coach, was the reaction of Real Madrid's goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, celebrating the goal with laughter and other gestures towards the southern stand, where the Frente Atletico is located. "Be careful with what we generate, punishment for the one who throws the lighter and for the one who provokes, you will see how everything balances out and that 'come here, come here, haha' doesn't happen again, because then you see that you can be penalized," he requested in the press conference after the Madrid derby.
The Atletico coach was vehement in his speech against fans who do not come to the stadium to support the team but to throw objects at players or coaches, including himself, who "provoke." "Be careful with us, as we become victims and we are not victims because if we provoke, there can be a reaction. Is it right for it to happen? No, but what we do is not right either, whether it's Courtois, Simeone, Vinicius, Messi, Griezmann... whoever," he commented.
When the referee stopped the match and sent the players to the locker rooms in the 67th minute, as noted in the official report "due to the continuous repetition of object throwing from the same area," Koke, Giménez, and Simeone himself approached the southern stand, where the Frente Atletico sits, to try to calm the situation.
According to the coach, they were told: "The club's message, to think about their team, because they were not helping them, and they said it was not their fault and that the rival goalkeeper had provoked them."
After the 17-minute interruption according to Busquets Ferrer's report, the match resumed, and there were still some more objects thrown at the Real Madrid goalkeeper, despite the referee noting in the official document that "the match resumed without further incidents." "These are situations we do not like, but we have to focus on the game," commented Atletico player Javi Galán.
Finally, the match ended in a draw with Correa scoring in added time with some luck and after several rebounds with rival players, including Courtois himself, to the delight of the crowd. "The referee decided to stop the match, something we don't like from within, we always want it to be a spectacle not only for those in the stadium but also for those watching on television, and we hope it doesn't happen again," said the goal scorer.
When the match ended, the Atletico players approached the Frente Atletico, the stand that had caused problems in the match, and applauded them for a few seconds before starting a lap of honor around the stadium.
An hour later, the club responded to the events at the Cívitas Metropolitano with a statement: "Atletico Madrid wants to express its rejection of the throwing of objects that occurred from a section of the southern stand in the 68th minute of the match against Real Madrid."
In the statement, they stated that the club's Security department was working "together with the Police" to identify the individuals responsible for throwing objects.
The club mentioned that "one of them has already been identified" and they assure that the "internal regulations for very serious cases" will be applied to him and "to the people involved in this incident."
"These attitudes have no place in football and tarnish the image of a stadium that experienced a spectacular atmosphere with over 70,000 spectators in the stands, who showed exemplary behavior for the most part," the statement concluded.
In fact, both during the incident and at the end of the match, when the team went to greet the Frente Atletico, a large part of the crowd booed the southern stand to express their discontent not only for what happened but also for that gesture from the first team.