Valdo gives Osasuna advantage in King's Cup semi

Valdo's first-half strike earned Osasuna a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid in their King's Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday.

The former Real Madrid midfielder reacted quickly to stab the ball through a crowd of players at a corner after 27 minutes, giving Osasuna the advantage for the return leg scheduled for Wednesday May 11.

A fired-up Osasuna took the game to Atletico and were utterly dominant in the opening period as visiting keeper Leo Franco was forced into a number of top-class saves.

Atletico fought back in the second half but failed to make the most of their numerical advantage after Osasuna's Carlos Cuellar was dismissed for his second yellow card seven minutes from time.

The other semi-final on Thursday pits Athletic Bilbao against in-form Real Betis.

Argentina keeper Franco denied Valdo and Richard Morales with fingertip saves before the side from Navarra took a deserved lead in the 27th minute.

Valdo's downward header from a Patxi Punal corner took a fortunate deflection off a defender and the midfielder stabbed the ball into the net.

Atletico, who have only managed two away wins in the league all season, struggled to cope with Osasuna's aggressive, direct style but slowly clawed their way back into the game after the interval.

Home keeper Juantxo Elia made his first real save of the night in the 64th minute when he turned substitute Salva Ballesta's shot around the post after a swift counterattack.

But Atletico, who have now failed to find the net in their last three outings, struggled to create clear-cut opportunities.