They left it late. Very late. Atletico Madrid needed two goals in the final two minutes of the game to see off Rayo Vallecano at Vallecas.

Substitute Angel Correa broke the deadlock to save Diego Simeone's side's skin, before Antoine Griezmann sealed it with a second goal.

The win put them back on top of La Liga, replacing Real Madrid, who had jumped above them earlier in the day.

Here are the winners and losers from the game...

Winner: Angel Correa

It's clear that Angel Correa has not won Diego Simeone's trust as a regular starter, but the Argentine is clearly going about it in the right way.

Per ESPN, Simeone argued to the contrary, claiming that the club trusts "him a lot".

"Angel [Correa] is growing up like any other 20-year-old," Simeone said.

"He started the season scoring and as a starter here and with his national team. All of this is part of his growth as a person and as a footballer. We trust him a lot."

The fact he hasn't started a game since October doesn't back up the coach's opinion, though.

Correa must keep doing what he does, which is playing with flair and spark.

He helped set up a goal in his previous outing, against Athletic Club, and today it was his strike which earned Atletico victory, running off his man and into the space, before firing into the top-right corner.

Keep it up and he'll be starting these games.

Loser: Fernando Torres

Sorry, Fernando. Watching the striker toil up front for Atletico is painful.

It is now 17 games since he last scored, leaving him poised on 99 goals for Atletico, with that 100th proving incredibly elusive.

Here he spurned a brilliant chance, one-one-one, with Rayo Vallecano's goalkeeper Yoel making a good save.

However, Torres shouldn't have given the stopper a chance.

Atletico are fighting it out at the top of La Liga, and what makes it all the more remarkable is that they are having such problems with their attackers.

Antoine Griezmann usually does his job, but whoever he is paired with has struggled.

Jackson Martinez did before his injury, with the Colombian hitman only making his return here after several weeks out injured.

Torres has floundered for weeks, even if some of his work up front is helpful for the team, while none of the younger options have taken Diego Simeone's fancy on a regular basis.

The striker needs a new deal at the end of the season, when his current one expires, but if he keeps going like this, it may not be forthcoming.

Winner: Thomas Partey

Diego Simeone has a midfield problem with Tiago out injured, and Thomas Partey, while young at 22, is offering the coach an option.

The Ghana midfielder is still somewhat raw, but Simeone has no qualms about throwing him on and letting him at opponents.

His brilliant work helped create Angel Correa's goal, with the midfielder driving inwards from the right, playing a one-two and then slipping in the Argentine striker expertly.

Partey has been decent in his appearances so far this season, including in the Copa del Rey against Reus, when he played in both legs and scored a goal.

But playing in La Liga is a level up, and his impact in this game should earn him further chances along the line.

Loser: Paco Jemez

Rayo Vallecano are in trouble. They are in the relegation zone, and that doesn't look like changing in the short term.

The coach has his particular style, attacking, daring, trying to win at the risk of losing instead of sitting back for the draw.

It hurt them against Atletico here. While most other teams would have battened down the hatches and tried to hold on to a creditable goalless draw at home against potential title contenders, Rayo were far too open.

Thomas Partey and Angel Correa took advantage, and as soon as they let in the first, their guard totally slipped and Atletico almost instantly added the second.

Jemez is much-admired, doing a lot with few resources at Rayo, but his side need to start turning the corner soon.

Winner: Antoine Griezmann

Antoine Grizemann has exploded in 2015, and he ended it in the perfect way.

Although this wasn't his best game for the club by any means, he did score one of his finest goals.

Played in down the left by Jackson Martinez, Griezmann judged the situation and dinked the ball wonderfully over the head of Yoel and into the net.

It was a fitting finish to a fine year for the French forward, and he has a lot to look forward to in the months ahead.

Firstly, the chance to challenge with Atletico on three fronts, as the key man in Diego Simeone's attack and secondly with France at Euro 2016.