Atletico Madrid have booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey after beating Rayo Vallecano 3-0 in the second leg of their last-16 clash at the Vicente Calderon.
The tie was delicately poised ahead of the second leg after the two teams played out a 1-1 draw last week, but a first-half strike from Angel Correa and an Antoine Griezmann double ensured that Atletico would advance into the final eight 4-1 on aggregate.
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Atletico's first sight of goal came in the sixth minute when a Koke free kick landed at the feet of Correa, but the Argentine's first touch was poor and the chance quickly evaporated, much to the relief of Rayo's defence.
Jackson Martinez, who had another difficult night, was next to come close for the hosts four minutes later, but the Colombian's header from a Koke corner was parried by Yoel Rodriguez, who then managed to gather at the second time of asking.
Rayo moved the ball well in the opening 15 minutes, however, and Adri Embarba created a shooting chance, but the Spaniard's effort was pushed away by Miguel Moya in the Atletico goal.
Chances were few and far between in what was a very even opening 30 minutes, with Embarba clearing the goal with a couple of efforts before Yoel tipped a powerful Thomas Partey header over the crossbar down the other end.
Atletico did take the lead five minutes before the break, however, when Correa collected a pass from Yannick Ferreira Carrasco before curling an unstoppable effort into the top corner via the crossbar.
The hosts really should have been 2-0 ahead late in the half, but Correa, after beating the offside trap, decided to square for Martinez and Quini made up excellent ground to clear with a fine last-ditch challenge.
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Atletico started the second half on the front foot and a couple of crosses from Thomas caused problems inside the Rayo box, but Yoel remained confident between the sticks and dealt with a number of dangerous situations.
Martinez was next to come close for the home side in the 68th minute, but his low strike was straight at Yoel, before Manucho headed wide of the post down the other end.
Diego Simeone's concern was shown 20 minutes from time when he introduced both Griezmann and Gabi in a bid to gain a greater control of the second leg at the Vicente Calderon. Embarba remained a threat for Rayo, however, and fizzed another strike just wide of the post in the 73rd minute.
Martinez was once again denied by Yoel in the 79th minute, but Atletico had their second less than one minute later when Griezmann turned home from close range after a mix-up inside the Rayo box.
The visitors put in a gutsy performance on the night, but they conceded a third in the first minute of additional time when Griezmann beat Yoel to the ball before converting from close range.
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