Barcelona strengthened their position at the top of La Liga after coming from behind to defeat Atletico Madrid 2-1, thanks to two goals from Fermin Lopez at the Metropolitano Stadium.
The victory gives the Spanish champions a three point advantage over second placed Real Madrid, who secured a 3-0 win against Valencia on Saturday. Atletico remain third, now five points behind Barcelona.
Atletico made a lively start and took the lead in the 10th minute after breaking through Barcelona’s defence. Julian Alvarez delivered a dangerous cross into the box, allowing Giuliano Simeone to turn the ball into the net from close range.
The opening minutes had already produced plenty of excitement, with both sides coming close to scoring. Alvarez had an opportunity to extend Atletico’s lead after going around Barcelona goalkeeper Joan Garcia, but the defence prevented him from completing the move.
Atletico defender Marc Pubill also came close when his header from the resulting corner struck the crossbar, with Garcia unable to reach it.
Barcelona responded through Pedri, whose powerful effort also hit the woodwork after Lamine Yamal created the opportunity. However, the visitors struggled to find their rhythm as Atletico continued to threaten.
Alvarez nearly doubled the hosts’ advantage with another effort, but although Garcia initially failed to hold the ball, he recovered quickly enough to prevent further danger. Yamal also fired into the side netting from a difficult angle as Barcelona searched for an equaliser.
Just when Atletico appeared set to take their advantage into the break, Lopez produced a crucial moment for Barcelona. After his route into the penalty area was blocked, the ball fell kindly to him, and he wasted no time in firing a powerful shot past goalkeeper Jan Oblak to make it 1-1.
Atletico had another opportunity shortly after the restart when Alvarez raced towards goal, but his attempted chip sailed over the crossbar.
The missed chance proved costly as Barcelona took the lead in the 66th minute. Yamal played an intelligent pass through Atletico’s defence, and Lopez kept his composure before calmly beating Oblak to complete the turnaround.
The goal was Lopez’s seventh in 11 La Liga appearances this season and his second of the night.
Barcelona remained organised in the closing stages, keeping Atletico from finding another equaliser and securing an important victory in the Spanish capital ahead of the international break.
Elsewhere in La Liga, fourth placed Real Betis defeated Elche 2-0, while fifth placed Real Sociedad recorded a narrow 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano.
Villarreal also claimed a 2-0 win against Getafe to move into eighth position, while Celta Vigo and Levante played out a goalless draw.
