(0-1) 13' Messi, (1-1) 25' Raul Garcia, (1-2) 32' Pique
Having lost in the Vicente Calderon on their last three visits, Pep Guardiola finally broke his duck at the home of Atletico Madrid, but it came at a cost. Lionel Messi had been his usual magnificent self, scoring the first and forcing the corner which lead to Piques strike. Barcelona rolled out some champagne football, but Atletico more than contributed to a feisty contest which ended with Tomas Ujfalusi planting the sole of his foot on Messis ankle, a tackle which lead to the Czech defender seeing a straight red and which will see Messi miss the next ten days of action.
Atletico put their UEFA Europa League flop behind them with a commited display, coming from behind to equalise through Raul Garcias header. The talk of the build up was whether Sergio Agüero would make it in time for the match. He did, but he clearly wasn't match fit and was hauled off after 50 minutes. It wasn't one of those vintage displays from Barcelona, but ultimately their sporadic flashes of class were enough to see off the Colchoneros, with David De Gea pulling off some world class saves in the second half to keep the defecit respectable. The young keepers mantle as Iker Casillas' heir to the throne in the Spanish national side is gathering more and more weight by the day. Pep Guardiola claimed after the match that if Atleti show this much fight in all their matches, they'll be contenders for the league. Post-match goodwill or not, you can't help but agree. Trouble is, can they maintain this form over the course of a season?
Tonights other results:
Malaga 1 - 2 Sevilla
(1-0) 14' Rondon, (1-1) 19' Alfaro, (1-2) 46' Caceres
Racing Santander 2 - 0 Real Zaragoza
(1-0) 76' Henrique, (2-0) 90' Ariel
Levante 1 - 2 Villarreal
(0-1) 16' Nilmar, (0-2) 42' Nilmar, (1-2) 90' Caicedo
Hercules 1 - 2 Valencia
(0-1) 2' Mata, (0-2) 23' Pablo Hernandez, (1-2) 43' Trezeguet (p)