Ferran Torres earns Barcelona vital victory in title tilt over stubborn Atleti
For a Barca side who hadn’t scored a goal across their last three games, conceding early would’ve been catastrophic.
It so nearly turned out that way for Xavi’s side though, who had the crossbar to thank for not falling behind inside a minute when Antoine Griezmann’s effort cannoned back off the upright.
That let-off failed to really spark Barça into life and they instead remained on the back foot for most of the first half, with Griezmann again trying his luck, only to this time be thwarted by Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
That save looked even more important on the stroke of half-time when Barca took the lead somewhat against the run of play. It was a rather uncharacteristic goal for Atletico to concede too, as their defence stood off making it all too easy for Ferran Torres to stroke the ball into the corner with consummate ease.
Confidence was coursing through Barca veins after ending their goal drought, in particular Torres, who forced a smart stop out of Jan Oblak as they pushed hard to double their advantage.
With just a one-goal advantage, the game was far from over, but Los Colchoneros certainly should’ve been put to bed 20 minutes from time when Robert Lewandowski’s cross was somehow not bundled over the line from a matter of yards by Raphinha.
Fortunately for Barca that miss didn’t prove to be costly and they were relatively untroubled in seeing out a victory that ends their three-match winless run.
As for Atletico, their six-match winning streak is over, but they’ll still harbour outside hopes of catching their city rivals Real in second place.