LaLiga
Barca Remain Top After Dropping Points At Atletico
LaLiga
Result: Atletico Madrid 1-1 FC Barcelona
Date: 24 November 2018
Venue: Estadio Wanda Metropolitano
Click through the gallery to see action from Barca's draw with Atletico.
FC Barcelona maintained top spot in LaLiga despite dropping points away to Atletico Madrid in a feisty encounter on Saturday evening.
Arturo Vidal was handed a rare start for Barcelona, replacing the suspended Ivan Rakitic while Ousmane Dembele was only named on the bench.
The Catalan giants were also looking to extend their gap over bitter rivals Real Madrid, who were thrashed 3-0 by Eibar earlier in the day.
There was a lively atmosphere in the opening stages of the encounter, but clear cut chances were hard to come by from both sides in the opening 20 minutes.
That's how the rest of the first half played out, as Barca had a number of set-piece opportunities, although Lionel Messi surprisingly failed to test Jan Oblak.
Unfortunately, those were only glimpses at goal in the half as the sides entered the break with nothing between them.
The second half continued in similar fashion to the first, as chances were hard to come by for both sides while Rafinha replaced the injured Sergi Roberto for Barca.
Antoine Griezmann carved out the game's first meaningful opening as he raced to the byline before looking for Diego Costa, who was thwarted by Pique in the box.
The deadlock was eventually broken in the 77th minute when Douglas Costa evaded his marker to send a fine header past Ter Stegen at the far post.
Ernesto Valverde responded by introducing Malcom for the final stages of the second half in place of Vidal as the visitors went in search of an equaliser.
The Catalan giants managed to secure a point late on, with Ousmane Dembele slotting under Oblak after being picked out by Messi.