Diego Simeone was thrilled to have Julian Alvarez on the scoresheet for Atletico Madrid once again, acknowledging how important it is to have him in their ranks.

Atletico edged past Real Oviedo with a 1-0 victory on Saturday, with Alvarez netting the winner in the dying seconds with their only shot on target in the match.

Alvarez's goal (93:11) was Atleti's latest winner in a league game since Alexander Sorloth struck against Barcelona (95:37) in December 2024.

While the Argentinian has found his scoring boots again in other competitions, Saturday's goal was his first in LaLiga since netting in a 3-0 win over Sevilla on November 1, ending a run of 14 games without one.

"A goal is always an incentive for strikers," Simeone said.

"He's a very important player, recognised worldwide, wanted by lots of teams, but we have him, and hopefully he can give us everything he's got, because he's a fantastic footballer.

"It's very good for the team [to have Alvarez scoring again]. Because in the second half, we improved on what we did in the first.

"We controlled the game more, played more in the opposition's half, had a goal disallowed by a whisker despite [Alex] Baena's fine finish and [Antoine] Griezmann's great pass.

"Without a doubt, Julian's goal makes me happy for him, too. Winning 1-0 with a goal from a striker, whether it's Sorloth, Griezmann, [Ademola] Lookman or Julian, is different for them, and it makes me very happy."

It was a victory that moved Atletico up to third in LaLiga, leapfrogging Villarreal after their loss to Barcelona earlier in the day.

And the Rojiblancos also had Jan Oblak to thank as he made six saves to frustrate the relegation-threatened hosts, who had 16 attempts in total worth 1.1 expected goals, bettering Atleti's 0.8 xG.

"Villarreal lost, and it was important to close in on the teams above us," Simeone added. "We were looking for consistency in LaLiga in order to compete.

"We had put in a lot of effort, so we had to manage the game with fresh players who could give us something for the whole 90 minutes, not just at the start.

"We had a goal disallowed and then that great goal."