Barcelona pull seven points clear at summit of LaLiga with battling win over 10-man Atletico

After witnessing title challengers Real Madrid suffer an unexpected loss to Mallorca earlier that day, Barcelona recognised that a strong performance in the capital would solidify their position at the top.

The match kicked off with action flowing both ways at the Metropolitano, as Antoine Griezmann fired directly at Joan Garcia following an excellent feint that deceived Ronald Araujo, while Fermin Lopez squandered an opportunity from Lamine Yamals precise trivela delivery.

The teams kept creating chances through the opening period, and the away side came close to scoring when Yamals lofted shot grazed the outside of the upright.

Atletico seized the moment from that escape, with Giuliano Simeone taming a long pass from Clement Lenglet before bending a precise shot past Garcia for his fourth league goal this term.

Yet the home teams celebration lasted only briefly, as Hansi Flicks squad levelled the scores mere minutes afterwards via Marcus Rashford, who linked up smoothly with Dani Olmo to drill a low effort beyond Juan Musso.

Emboldened by the quick response, Barcelona received a significant advantage right before the break when Atleticos Nicolas Gonzalez received a red card for a last-ditch foul on Yamal.

The away team aimed to intensify their efforts at the beginning of the second half, though they were lucky not to lose a player too, as Gerard Martins reckless challenge on Thiago Almada resulted in a yellow card rather than a dismissal.

Determined to secure a fourth straight head-to-head league victory at the Metropolitano, Barcelona increased the intensity as the clock approached the last 30 minutes, with Yamal sending a shot just past the post and Ferran Torres close-range attempt brilliantly tipped away by Musso.

The relentless pressure from one side persisted without let-up, prompting Flick to bring on Lewandowski from the substitutes in search of a late decisive goal.

The forward obliged in the dying minutes, positioning himself perfectly to nudge a rebound into the net after Joao Cancelos first attempt was blocked by Musso.

That turned out to be the game-changing moment for the Blaugrana, who managed the final moments to stretch their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games (W8, D1) prior to a major UEFA Champions League quarter-final clash against Diego Simeoness side midweek.