Atletico beat weakened Real Madrid to edge closer to Champions League place

Atletico Madrid claimed a first La Liga derby win against Real Madrid in six years on Sunday thanks to Yannick Carrasco's first-half penalty.

Victory moved fourth-place Atleti six points clear of Real Betis with three games to go and on the cusp of securing Champions League qualification.

Their better head-to-head record over Betis means they will be guaranteed to finish in the top four if Betis fail to win away at Valencia on Tuesday.

If Betis beat Valencia, Atletico can make sure of their spot themselves by winning away at Elche on Wednesday.

Sevilla's place also looks almost sealed after a 1-1 draw away at Villarreal earlier on Sunday gave them a seven-point cushion over Betis.

Carrasco's conversion proved enough at the Wanda Metropolitano against a weakened Real Madrid, who took the chance to rotate after their incredible Champions League comeback against Manchester City on Wednesday.

With Karim Benzema, Luka Modric and Thibaut Courtois among those on the bench for the already-crowned champions, Atletico took advantage, even if they missed a string of chances that made the contest far more uncomfortable than it needed to be.

Atletico had not beaten Real Madrid in La Liga since 2016 and not at home since 2015, while their last eight games in all competitions against their city rivals had brought two goals and no victories.

Carlo Ancelotti made a raft of changes to his starting line-up as only Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Eder Militao remained from the team that pulled off the sensational victory over City.

It meant rare starts for the likes of Luka Jovic up front, Eduardo Camavinga in midfield and Jesus Vallejo at the back while Ukrainian Andriy Lunin made his first league appearance of the season in goal.

Atletico's