Álvarez scored his first goal of the season, but Atlético finished with ten men after Morten Hjulmand's red card.
Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman came on at half-time for Atlético Madrid, who trailed Stuttgart 1-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday. Barely a minute into the second half, he found Julián Álvarez unmarked in the area, and the Argentine striker swept the equaliser in 80 seconds after the restart. The game ended 1-1. Atlético midfielder Morten Hjulmand was sent off in the 64th minute for a reckless challenge on Angelo Stiller, and the ten men held on for a point.
Stuttgart had been on top for the first half before Jamie Leweling put them ahead in the 36th minute with a low strike from just outside the box.
Atlético coach Diego Simeone told Movistar: "I was sure the goal was going to come." He said the sending off had changed the match: "we couldn't keep the game where we wanted because of the sending off, which affected us." He also said the dismissal was fair.
Lookman explained the pass that set up the goal:
"I tried to look out for him in the box; he's always in the box, and I know he would score."
Simeone explained why he paired Alexander Sørloth with Lookman. "We brought on Sorloth to partner Lookman and have another striker available in case Stuttgart became disorganised and a counter-attacking opportunity or a play near the penalty area arose," he said. Reports put Lookman in line to start against Deportivo La Coruña at the weekend, according to Futbol Fantasy.
The goal was Álvarez's first of the season and his first for Atlético in almost six months. His previous goal came on 29 April, when he scored in a Champions League fixture against Arsenal. The striker had been at the centre of a summer of transfer speculation, as Barcelona tried to lure him from Atlético. Full-back Alejandro Grimaldo said of him: "He's our best player."
According to Transfermarkt, Lookman now has 50 assists in senior club football.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, 19-year-old Slavia Prague youngster Mubarak Suleiman started in the 2-2 draw away to Fenerbahce. He made two key passes before Pavel Kacor replaced him with five minutes remaining. According to Punch, Suleiman equalled Alex Iwobi's record for Nigerian teenagers in the competition. Opta Joe's figures also show he is the first Nigerian teen to start a Champions League match since Iwobi, who did so for Arsenal versus Barcelona in March 2016.
Atlético are 15th in the Champions League standings with four points. Their next Champions League match is against Bayern Munich on 3 November.
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