Spanish La Liga
BarcelonaBarcelona1Atl MadridAtlético Madrid1

Barcelona 1-1 Atlético Madrid

Angel Correa
Angel Correa celebrates his equaliser for Atletico Madrid

Barcelona failed to narrow the gap on league leaders Real Madrid as they were held by title rivals Atletico Madrid.

After failing to unpick Atletico's defence with intricate passing, the hosts took the lead as Ivan Rakitic glanced in Andres Iniesta's cross.

Lionel Messi was forced off with an injury on the hour and Atletico took quick advantage as Angel Correa danced through the defence to equalise.

Gerard Pique and Diego Godin went close but neither La Liga side could score.

A point means Luis Enrique's side could only match Real's earlier draw with Villarreal as they remain third in the league behind their fiercest rivals and Sevilla.

Messi misery

The hosts were undoubtedly rocked by the loss of Messi on 59 minutes, with Barcelona subsequently tweeting the star striker will be out for three weeks.external-link

A seemingly innocuous challenge from Godin saw the Argentine forced to hobble off with a recurrence of the groin injury that forced him to fly back early from international duty this month for treatment.

The hosts then switched off shortly after, allowing Correa to burst through largely untroubled and equalise for Atletico.

Without the spark provided by Messi and the organisation of Busquets, who also was withdrawn through injury shortly after the break, Barcelona lost their way.

Lionel Messi leaves the field with an injury
Lionel Messi leaves the field after suffering a recurrence of a groin injury

Simeone's super subs

Diego Simeone's tactical acumen is no secret but the Atletico boss proved his shrewdness once again as his double substitution resulted in instant success.

Kevin Gameiro and the ineffectual Saul were taken off for Fernando Torres and Correa, with the former providing a deft flick for Correa to run on to, taking advantage of Javier Mascherano's slip to pick his spot and slot the ball inside Marc-Andre ter Stegen's near post.

Simeone took full advantage of the misfortune suffered by Barcelona's own Argentine master as he urged his side forward against an increasingly ragged opposition.

And had Ter Stegen not produced a fine fingertip save in the final moments to deny Godin's powerful header, then Simeone would have been celebrating another underdog victory.

Defensive duo

In a match full of attacking talents, both sides also showed their defensive strength, as exemplified by Godin and Pique.

Both centre-backs organised their defences brilliantly and each had a chance to win the tie for their sides as they stole a march on their respective markers to go close late on.

Line-ups

Barcelona

Formation 4-3-3

  • 1ter Stegen
  • 20Roberto Carnicer
  • 3Piqué
  • 14Mascherano
  • 18AlbaBooked at 90mins
  • 4Rakitic
  • 5BusquetsSubstituted forAndré Gomesat 51'minutes
  • 8Iniesta
  • 10MessiSubstituted forTuranat 59'minutes
  • 9SuárezBooked at 84mins
  • 11Neymar

Substitutes

  • 6D Suárez
  • 7Turan
  • 13Cillessen
  • 17Alcácer
  • 19Digne
  • 21André Gomes
  • 24Mathieu

Atl Madrid

Formation 4-2-3-1

  • 13Oblak
  • 20Torres Belén
  • 15Savic
  • 2Godín
  • 3Filipe LuísBooked at 86mins
  • 8SaúlSubstituted forTorresat 60'minutes
  • 14Fernández Arenas
  • 7GriezmannBooked at 67mins
  • 6KokeBooked at 54mins
  • 10CarrascoSubstituted forParteyat 73'minutesBooked at 82mins
  • 21GameiroSubstituted forCorreaat 60'minutes

Substitutes

  • 9Torres
  • 11Correa
  • 19Hernández
  • 22Partey
  • 23Gaitán
  • 24Giménez de Vargas
  • 25Campos Moreira
Referee:
David José Fernández Borbalán
Attendance:
87,315

Match Stats

Home TeamBarcelonaAway TeamAtl Madrid
Possession
Home70%
Away30%
Shots
Home19
Away9
Shots on Target
Home7
Away4
Corners
Home8
Away2
Fouls
Home14
Away17

Live Text

  1. Post update

    Match ends, Barcelona 1, Atlético de Madrid 1.

  2. Full Time

    Second Half ends, Barcelona 1, Atlético de Madrid 1.

  3. Post update

    André Gomes (Barcelona) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  4. Post update

    Foul by Fernando Torres (Atlético de Madrid).

  5. Post update

    Attempt missed. Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Neymar following a corner.

  6. Post update

    Corner, Barcelona. Conceded by Juanfran.

  7. Post update

    Attempt blocked. Neymar (Barcelona) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Andrés Iniesta.

  8. Post update

    Neymar (Barcelona) wins a free kick on the left wing.

  9. Post update

    Foul by Juanfran (Atlético de Madrid).

  10. Post update

    Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  11. Post update

    Foul by Thomas Partey (Atlético de Madrid).

  12. Post update

    Offside, Atlético de Madrid. Koke tries a through ball, but Juanfran is caught offside.

  13. Post update

    Attempt missed. Koke (Atlético de Madrid) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.

  14. Booking

    Jordi Alba (Barcelona) is shown the yellow card.

  15. Post update

    Attempt missed. Ivan Rakitic (Barcelona) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Sergi Roberto.

  16. Post update

    Corner, Atlético de Madrid. Conceded by Marc-André ter Stegen.

  17. Post update

    Attempt saved. Diego Godín (Atlético de Madrid) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Koke with a cross.

  18. Post update

    Foul by André Gomes (Barcelona).

  19. Post update

    Juanfran (Atlético de Madrid) wins a free kick on the right wing.

  20. Booking

    Filipe Luis (Atlético de Madrid) is shown the yellow card.

Scores, Results & Fixtures

Wednesday 21st September 2016

As It Stood

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Real Madrid5410134913
2Sevilla5320106411
3Barcelona5311146810
4Atl Madrid523011299
5Las Palmas530212939
6Villarreal52306339
7Ath Bilbao53026519
8Real Sociedad52128717
9Eibar52126607
10Sporting Gijón521259-47
11Alavés41303216
12Dep La Coruña41212205
13Malaga512257-25
14Real Betis5122711-45
15Leganés411237-44
16Celta Vigo511338-54
17Espanyol4022711-42
18Osasuna402238-52
19Granada5023612-62
20Valencia4004510-50
View full Spanish La Liga table