Ten reasons behind Atletico Madrid's shock Copa del Rey exit

Girona's late leveller on Wednesday night at the Wanda Metropolitano saw Atletico Madrid suffer a shock elimination from the Copa del Rey at the Round of 16 phase.

Diego Simeone's side led twice on the night but Borja Garcia's strike two minutes from time gave the Catalans a 4-4 aggregate win thanks to the away goals rule.

We take a look at ten factors that contributed to Atletico's disappointing evening:

Over-confidence

Needing just a goalless draw following the 1-1 result the week before made Atletico and Simeone relax, with several stars rested. This was amplified by Nikola Kalinic's opener early on, as Atletico left holes in the midfield which Girona exploited.

Griezmann on the bench

Atletico have depended on the Frenchman so often this season that his absence, more often than not, proves fatal. Despite his goal that put them 3-2 up on the night in the closing stages, it was not enough and Simeone was left to rue not starting his main man.

Oblak has to start in crucial games

Antonio Adan is the designated Copa goalkeeper for Simeone, with Jan Oblak the main undisputed no.1 in LaLiga. However, in such decisive matches, the Slovenian's abilities are required.

Defensive frailties

Over the years, Atletico have been synonymous with a solid backline yet they have shown signs of weakness in recent months and Girona were able to pick off an ageing defence at ease.

Rodrigo must play every game

As Gabi did back in his heyday, Rodrigo provides unrivalled balance to the midfield. Saul, Koke and Thomas Partey have wonderful quality but the former Villarreal man is tactically and defensively superior. Atletico looked lost without him and the elimination highlights just how important he is.

Gaping gap between starters and subs

Every great team needs to rely on their backup players but, at Atletico, there seems to be a large gap between the quality of the starters and the substitutes which raises serious concern for Simeone over who he can trust when his key men need a break.

Killing the game

Atletico led twice on the night but were unable to put away chances to kill the tie once and for all.

Farewell to a title

The cup was a priority for Atletico, seen as a more realistic chance for silverware compared to LaLiga and the Champions League, but they squandered a golden opportunity.

Small squad for three competitions

Atletico only have 20 players, and some of those hardly get the chance to compete. Furthermore, frequent injuries to players like Vitolo and Saul make it impossible to battle for titles.

Harmed by VAR

Simeone's men can feel a little hard done by the video assistant referees, with two goals ruled out for offside when their appeared to be very little daylight between defender and attacker.