Barcelona see the league title slip further away
Lionel Messi scored his 700th senior goal last night at Camp Nou with a cheeky 'Panenka' style penalty sending Jan Oblak the wrong way. The Argentine striker left the pitch with a scowl however after another draw further derailing the Catalan sides hope of retaining their LaLiga title. Real Madrid have played a game less now than their eternal rivals and hold a two point advantage over Barça although Zidane's men face two tricky tests in Getafe at home followed by a weekend trip to Bilbao to face Athletic. Atleti will be more than happy with their haul from Camp Nou as the point helps consolidate their third placing in the table after an intense match in the Catalan capital.
From the spot
The game itself was a fine advertisement for LaLiga but one that warranted goals of a higher calibre. Barça took the lead early on through an own-goal from Diego Costa with the rest of the evening's goals coming from the penalty spot. Atlético tied the game but only after the referee decided that Diego Costa's effort had seen Ter Stegen move from his line before the ball was struck. Mateu Lahoz ordered the missed kick to be retaken with the second spot kick being dispatched by Saúl despite a barrage of protests from both Piqué y Messi.
Solid Atleti
Once again Riqui Puig impressed for the Catalan side with the young central player impressive in the role controlling the tempo of the game with a criteria the belies his age. Setien was slow in bringing on Ansu Fati with the teenager only making way with the clock ticking down towards the 90 minute mark. The Cantabian coach opted to play a 4-4-2 system with Arturo Vidal also playing in a central role. This formation selection saw Griezmann condemned to the bench again with the French international only getting playing time in time added on with the game tied at 2-2. From an Atlético perspective, Llorente was quieter than in previous games but Carrasco was a major stand-out for Simeone's men. The Belgian international was awarded both spot kicks and the performance justified bringing him back from China. Atlético looked solid and edge closer to their objective of a Champions League place for the 2020/21 campaign.