Atletico Madrid could not have scripted a better opening night. Lee Kang-in marked his official debut with a jaw-dropping curling strike to send the Riyadh Air Metropolitano into a frenzy, powering Diego Simeone’s side to a 2-0 win over newly-promoted Malaga on the opening weekend of the 2026-27 La Liga season. For a club that finished last season with its lowest points tally in fourteen years, this was exactly the statement start they needed.
A Cagey Night Turned Instant Fireworks
For long spells, this looked like it might be a forgettable opener. Without Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth, Atletico struggled to break down Malaga’s disciplined low block, and the first half ended goalless despite Jan Oblak having to produce a sharp double save to keep his side level.
Simeone shook things up just before the hour mark, sending on Lee Kang-in alongside Giuliano Simeone and Alex Baena in a triple substitution that changed the entire complexion of the match.
It did not take long for the gamble to pay off. In the 70th minute, Lee controlled a cross-field ball with his chest, drove at the Malaga defense, shimmied past three defenders with a slick body feint, and curled a trademark left-footed strike into the far top corner.
According to broadcast tracking data, the shot left his boot at over 114 kilometers per hour, and it barely mattered that Malaga’s goalkeeper got a hand near it. The stadium erupted, and Atletico’s own social media account summed up the mood perfectly, posting the goal with the caption asking simply whether anyone still had opinions about the signing.
Silencing the Doubters in Record Time
The pressure on Lee heading into this match was significant. He arrived from Paris Saint-Germain for a reported 40 million euros and was handed the number 7 shirt previously worn by club legend Antoine Griezmann, Atletico’s all-time leading scorer.
That kind of number swap invites scrutiny fast, and plenty of pundits questioned whether the South Korean international could really fill those boots. It took him just thirteen minutes on the pitch to answer every question, and Spanish outlet Marca did not hold back afterward, running a headline calling him the club’s new hero.
Alex Baena added gloss to the scoreline five minutes from time, curling a spectacular free kick from twenty-five yards into the roof of the net to make it 2-0 and hand Atletico a perfect start. Lee finished the night with the official La Liga Match MVP award, completing thirteen of fourteen passes and winning every ground duel he contested in his thirty-three minutes on the field.
What This Means Going Forward
Reaction across X was immediate and overwhelming, with fans and football accounts flooding timelines calling it one of the goals of the weekend across Europe.
For Simeone, the win extends an already imposing personal record in league openers, with just one defeat in his last fifteen campaign-opening fixtures at the club. For Lee, it is the kind of debut that changes a narrative overnight, transforming preseason skepticism into genuine belief that Atletico have found their next attacking talisman.
With the transfer window still open and more reinforcements possibly on the way, Atletico fans have every reason to feel optimistic. If Lee Kang-in’s first appearance is any indication of what is coming, the Metropolitano faithful may already be witnessing the start of something special.
