Moya takes positives from defensive showing

Miguel Angel Moya believes Atletico Madrid’s defensive solidarity was the main positive from their 0-0 stalemate with Rayo Vallecano.

Atletico started the defence of their La Liga title with an uninspiring draw at the Estadio del Rayo Vallecano on Monday, in a match that coach Diego Simeone was forced to watch from the stands as he began his eight-game ban.

The champions underwent wholesale changes in the close-season, and new attacking trio Mario Mandzukic, Raul Jimenez and Antoine Griezmann had little impact against Rayo.

Goalkeeper Moya was keen to stress that Atletico’s resilience at the back is a plus point to take from the clash.

“I’ll take the positive of not conceding a goal and being strong at the back,” he told Canal+.

“It’s a valuable draw because we started the league away from home. We are an ambitious team that wants to win in all the competitions.

“The team still shows a very good defensive solidity that is ultimately what makes us win.

“In attack, we haven’t been the Atletico we all wanted, but [the season] is very long.”