Barca ease to Getafe win, Atletico held after missed penalty

Ferran Torres netted a brace for title holders Barcelona during their 3-0 victory over Getafe on Sunday, keeping them close behind Real Madrid at the summit of La Liga.

Dani Olmo also found the net for the Catalan club, who sit two points adrift of the league frontrunners after Xabi Alonso's team secured a win against Espanyol on Saturday to preserve their perfect run.

Atletico Madrid's faltering campaign kicked off with another setback, a 1-1 stalemate against Mallorca, where forward Julian Alvarez squandered a spot kick.

Hosting the match at the 6,000 seat Johan Cruyff arena near their training facility once more while awaiting permits to resume play at their upgraded Camp Nou, Barcelona controlled proceedings against a lacklustre Getafe outfit.

Even after his double strike versus Newcastle in the Champions League, manager Hansi Flick benched Marcus Rashford, with local press suggesting it stemmed from the English player's tardiness at a team briefing.

The coach has previously excluded squad members for similar infractions, such as centre back Jules Kounde.

"(Rotation) is standard since we face games every three or four days, requiring fresh players on the field," Flick explained when questioned about Rashford's omission from the starting XI.

Stepping in for sidelined young sensation Lamine Yamal, Torres seized his opportunity fully.

"With so many fixtures ahead, it's excellent to see the whole squad performing at this standard," Flick remarked.

The home grown talent broke the deadlock with a forceful shot following a fluid team play, as Olmo cleverly nudged the ball to him inside the penalty area.

Torres's follow up goal was superior, delicately placed into the far bottom corner from distance after Raphinha played him clear on goal.

The attacker rattled the crossbar with another attempt, nearly claiming a treble before the interval.

A number of Barcelona stars showed frustration prior to halftime due to Getafe's aggressive and delayed challenges, many targeting Kounde.

Flick introduced Rashford in place of Raphinha during the break, possibly to prevent the winger from risking ejection.

"Often, they focus less on playing and more on committing excessive fouls, in my view, yet we handled it effectively," Torres shared with DAZN.

"I told the group: concentrate on our game, not theirs," Flick noted.

Rashford set up Barcelona's final goal by darting inwards from the right and squaring to Olmo for an easy tap in, while seeing two of his own strikes parried by Getafe's custodian David Soria.

The sole concern for Barcelona came when replacement Fermin Lopez seemed to suffer an injury in added time.

Frustrated Atletico

Prior to that, Atletico managed only a point at Mallorca despite controlling the action.

Diego Simeone's charges, down to ten after Alexander Sorloth's sending off, went ahead via Conor Gallagher, only for Vedat Muriqi to equalise late on in the 85th minute.

This result positioned Atletico in 12th place, with just a single victory from their opening five outings.

"We controlled the match throughout, right up to our goal, then with an extra man they ramped up the intensity," Atletico skipper Koke commented to DAZN.

"Evidently, the key is putting the ball in the net, and ours refused to go in."

The point keeps Atletico nine adrift of pacesetting Real Madrid and seven off Barcelona.

Still smarting from a crushing last gasp Champions League loss to Liverpool earlier in the week, Atletico endured a comparable disappointment.

"We must get better at clinging to leads... (however) we're assembling a fresh squad, many new faces have arrived. The direction is positive," Simeone stated.

Mallorca's keeper Leo Roman produced key stops, among them denying Alvarez from the penalty spot after skipper Antonio Raillo impeded David Hancko's effort in the opening period.

Atletico's task grew tougher when Sorloth earned his marching orders for a reckless lunge on Raillo in the 72nd minute, but soon after Gallagher pounced on a loose ball to score.

Yet Simeone's team couldn't defend their advantage, as Muriqi headed home for the home side with five minutes left.