Alvaro Morata headed in a sumptuous Kieran Trippier cross to ensure a new-look Atletico Madrid beat Getafe 1-0 on Sunday and made a winning start in La Liga.

Trippier looked right at home at the Wanda Metropolitano when his bending ball was nodded in by Morata before two red cards in four minutes, one for each team, made it 10 against 10 before half-time.

Getafe striker Jorge Molina and Atletico left-back Renan Lodi were the players sent off and then Morata missed a penalty, earned after a mesmeric run from Joao Felix, Atletico’s 126 million euro signing from Benfica.

It was enough for Felix to depart to a standing ovation and Atletico held on, even if this was perhaps not the statement opening to the season that Diego Simeone might have hoped for.

Getafe were stubborn opponents, showing again why they finished fifth last season, only narrowly missing out on a place in the Champions League to Valencia on the final day.

Felix aside, Atletico’s other debutants impressed, including Lodi, before he was sent off, and Trippier, the first Englishman to play for Atletico since the Spanish Civil War and 20th in the history of the Spanish top flight.

The former Tottenham defender’s pin-point cross was the highlight of a confident performance that earned regular praise from the home fans. Getafe had struggled to find a way into the match but two red cards in four minutes threatened to shift the balance.

First, referee Cuadra Fernandez turned a yellow card into a red for Molina after consulting VAR, the striker catching Thomas Partey late down the back of his heel. Then Lodi was handed a second yellow for planting his hand in the face of Damian Suarez.