Dove on the pitch: Atletico Madrid defender Jose Gimenez removes the feathered intruder

A pigeon briefly stopped playing during Atletico Madrid’s 3-2 win over Real Sociedad, with defender Jose Gimenez removing the bird from the field and moving it to safety.

The stoppage came in the 22nd minute when the Uruguayan took the injured bird off the field after the ball apparently hit him.

Speaking about the incident, Spanish media quoted Jimenez as saying: “I asked the referee what was happening. He told me it was because of the dove and I said: ‘Seriously? Did you stop the match because of the dove?

“I picked him up. I don’t know if there’s supposed to be a protocol. I hope he’s not seriously hurt.”

This was Jimenez’s second assist in the match after he created Atletico’s first goal, passing a long throw for Alexander Sorloth to score in the fifth minute.

Carlos Soler then responded for the visitors four minutes later.

Then Nicolas Gonzalez scored twice from Mikel Oyarzabal’s goal as coach Diego Simeone’s team strengthened its grip on third place in the league.