Barcelona move clear at the top after Fermín López’s double stuns Atlético Madrid

They had been in a battle, they had been behind and they had been on edge, but Barcelona found a way through, holding on to their place at the top of the table and holding the doubts at bay for another day. A fortnight in which they were defeated by PSG and Real Madrid, in which they might have wondered if something was not quite right, ended with a 2-1 win at Atlético Madrid. This was a proper test, first place awaiting the winner, and in the end that was Hansi Flick’s side.

At a noisy, intense Metropolitano, against an even more intense Atlético, they had gone behind to a Giuliano Simeone goal and for a while in a frantic first half it looked like there may be no way back. But they found it, two goals from Fermín López either side of half-time leading them to the kind of victory that brings a reward beyond just the points. It had been a long night, but they had made it.

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