Atletico Madrid Spaniard again netted first for Atleti

"It was a difficult game"

Hot and cold Atletico warm up for Real Madrid with narrow win

In what is becoming something of a regular occurrence, Saul Niguez once again proved he is the king of the opening goal in netting first for Atletico Madrid as Los Colchoneros secured victory over Eibar.

Champions League qualification is now the primary aim for Diego Simeone's side and Saturday's victory was an important three points as nearest challengers Villarreal slipped to a 4-1 defeat at the Camp Nou.

Of the eight goals Saul has netted in all competitions this term, seven of them have been opening goals with the only exception being his strike against Las Palmas when he contributed the second after Kevin Gameiro opened proceedings.

Goalscoring midfielders are a hot commodity and it is clear why England's wealthiest clubs all have the Spaniard in their sights, however for now he is Los Colchoneros' driving force from the middle of the pitch.

Right when his team have needed him, the 22-year-old has responded with breaking the deadlock against PSV Eindhoven, Bayer Leverkusen and Leicester City.

It isn't just the 2016/17 season which has seen the former Rayo Vallecano playmaker deliver crucial goals at defining moments of matches - as Bayern Munich will attest.

Saul's wondrous individual run and strike handed Los Rojiblancos a crucial 1-0 advantage in last season's Champions League semi-final.

On Saturday, Eibar's defence was resolute as they kept the hosts at bay for the entire first-half although it was the Spanish midfielder that caused them the most problems.

After he'd fired a curling shot just wide of the post from Thomas Partey's fine pass, Saul's reward would come in the 69th minute.

Diego Godin marauded forward to join the attack on the left flank and a nice piece of interplay with Fernando Torres set Saul free inside the penalty area and his low shot found the back of the net.

It was Atletico's 100th goal of the season with Simeone's team having finally shaken their unfair reputation of being a defensive team.