Atletico Madrid finally got their season up and running on Saturday, with Pablo Barrios and Nico Gonzalez on target in a 2-0 home victory over Villarreal that delivered the Spanish side's first win of the campaign, Reuters reported.

The victory lifted Atletico to ninth in the LaLiga standings with five points from four games, while dealing Villarreal their first defeat a month into the season.

Atletico struck early when Julian Alvarez capitalised on a defensive howler in the ninth minute, pouncing on Sergi Cardona's wayward back-pass to Renato Veiga before bursting into the box and brilliantly putting the ball on a plate for Barrios with a backheel pass. The midfielder fired a first-touch effort past Luiz Junior and into the back of the net, according to Reuters.