Barcelona earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Atletico Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano on Sunday, moving 3 points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga table. The Catalans got off to a strong start, with a moment of individual magic from Pedri setting up Dembele for the opening goal. Despite being outplayed for much of the match, Barcelona showed resilience and determination, making key defensive plays and benefiting from a bit of luck. In the end, the Blaugrana were able to hold on for the crucial win on the road. 

First Half

Barcelona began the match with the intention of controlling possession and limiting Atletico's opportunities on the counter-attack. The Blaugrana crowded the midfield and passed the ball as much as possible, but found it difficult to create openings against a solid Atletico defense. It wasn't until Pedri's solo run and assist to Dembele that the Catalans were able to break the deadlock. Going behind finally sparked Atletico into action, and the home team began to apply heavy pressure on Barcelona's defense. The Colchoneros created several good chances, but were unable to convert due to poor finishing and a spectacular save from Marc-André ter Stegen. 

At halftime, Barcelona were lucky to be ahead and needed to improve their performance to withstand the Atletico onslaught in the second half. 

Last Half

In the second half, Barcelona adopted a strategy of allowing Atletico to have the ball while remaining organized and not allowing any clear chances. This approach largely worked, as the Colchoneros had possession and a few good opportunities on crosses and shots from distance, but nothing that truly threatened ter Stegen in goal. 

As the match entered the final 10 minutes, Barcelona focused on preserving their lead and running the clock down, but the match took a dramatic turn in stoppage time when both Ferran Torres and Stefan Savic were shown straight red cards after getting into a physical altercation. With both teams reduced to 10 men and no substitutions remaining, the match became even more wide open in the closing stages. 

Atletico created a big chance in the dying minutes when Antoine Griezmann was left alone in front of goal, but Ronald Araujo made a miraculous goal-line clearance to keep Barcelona's lead intact. Griezmann also had a late free-kick opportunity, but his shot deflected off the wall and the match ended with a tense Barcelona victory. In the end, the Blaugrana were able to hold on for the crucial win despite being outplayed for much of the match, thanks to their character, defensive efforts, and a bit of luck.


Atlético: Oblak; Molina, Savic, Giménez, Reinildo (Reguilón 81’); Llorente, Koke (Lemar 74’), Barrios (Kondogbia 65’), Carrasco (Morata 65’); Griezmann, Félix (Correa 74’)

Goals: None

Red Card: Savic (90+2’)

Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen, Balde (Alonso 81’); Busquets (Roberto 81’), De Jong (Kessie 58’); Dembélé, Gavi (Raphinha 73’), Pedri; Fati (Ferran 58’)

Goal: Dembélé (22’)

Red Card: Ferran (90+2)