Atletico Madrid hold off 10-man Real Madrid in fiery La Liga derby

Atletico Madrid defeated 10-man Real Madrid 2-1 at the Metropolitano on Sunday to move second in La Liga and leave Jose Mourinho’s side six points behind leaders Barcelona.

Dean Huijsen was sent off early in the second half after pulling down Giuliano Simeone inside the area. Alejandro Grimaldo converted the resulting penalty before Jonathan David doubled Atletico’s advantage in the 59th minute.

Antonio Rudiger headed a late goal for Real Madrid, but it was not enough to prevent them suffering their second defeat of the campaign. Atletico are now five points behind Barcelona and one point above their city rivals.

The decisive moment came when Huijsen stopped Giuliano Simeone as the Atletico forward broke through on goal. Following a VAR review, the Real Madrid defender was dismissed and Grimaldo sent the penalty beyond goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

Mourinho had selected Aurelien Tchouameni in midfield ahead of Bernardo Silva, favouring a more defensive approach. That caution was reflected in a poor first half, which offered little attacking quality despite the individual talent on display.

Vinicius Junior, Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham were largely unable to influence the game, while the principal talking point before the interval involved Bellingham and Atletico defender Cristian Romero.

Bellingham went into a challenge and Romero stepped on the England international’s leg. Bellingham was initially shown a yellow card, but the referee overturned that decision after reviewing the incident and instead booked Romero.

Real Madrid were also angered by a strong challenge from Lee Kang-in on Federico Valverde shortly before half-time, which went unpunished.

Mourinho responded to Huijsen’s dismissal by taking off Vinicius and Arda Guler and introducing club record signing Yan Diomande and Rudiger. Atletico, however, added to their lead when Giuliano Simeone’s low cross travelled across the area for Canada international David to finish.

The home side nearly scored again. Courtois produced an excellent save to deny Julian Alvarez, before Ibrahima Konate cleared Grimaldo’s follow-up header off the line after the rebound.

Jan Oblak then saved from Diomande, while Bellingham and Giuliano Simeone exchanged words as Real Madrid’s frustration grew. The visitors were unable to alter the direction of the match until Rudiger headed Bernardo Silva’s cross past Oblak in the closing stages.

Atletico survived the late pressure to claim victory in a tense derby.

Atletico Madrid forward Jonathan David is challenged by Real Madrid defender Marc Cucurella during the La Liga match at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid.

Image: AFP