Dembele earns Barca La Liga advantage in tense Atletico triumph

MADRID: Ousmane Dembele’s strike sent Barcelona three points clear at the top of La Liga with a tense 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Capitalising on champions Real Madrid’s defeat by Villarreal, Barcelona set out to make a statement victory at the Metropolitano. Shorn of suspended top scorer Robert Lewandowski, Xavi selected Ansu Fati up front in his place, but it was Dembele who made the difference, finishing a slick move in the 22nd minute.

Atletico ramped up the pressure, with the superb Ronald Araujo clearing off the line from Antoine Griezmann at the death, but Diego Simeone’s side could not find an equalizer. Both teams finished with 10 men after Ferran Torres and Stefan Savic were sent off for brawling with each other on the floor as tempers soured. Defeat means Atletico languish in fifth, 14 points behind leaders Barcelona.

Youngster Fati had an early effort brilliantly blocked by the sprawling Jose Gimenez, as Barcelona dominated the opening exchanges. The coach opted to play with four midfielders instead of his usual three, starting with both Sergio Busquets and Frenkie de Jong as well as youngsters Pedri and Gavi. Xavi said on Saturday Atletico barely have any gaps in their defense but Pedri uncovered one to create the opening goal.

The midfielder burst forward in the 22nd minute to capitalize on space in front of the box, before feeding Gavi, who teed up Dembele to clinically slot home. Pedri could have doubled the lead moments later when Atletico foolishly gifted him the ball with a poor pass-back, but he delayed his finish too long and Nahuel Molina denied him. Marcos Llorente had Atletico’s first decent opportunity after half an hour when Griezmann scooped a ball delicately over the defense to