Barcelona 2-0 Atletico Madrid: Champions toil hard for all three points against ten-man visitors [Tweets]

Barcelona had to work hard for all three points against a resilient 10-man Atletico Madrid as late goals from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez earned them all three points.

Atletico Madrid took the game to their hosts from the word go, but saw their challenge faltering when Diego Costa was sent off just before the half hour mark for a verbal altercation with the referee. The visitors though, resiliently defended for the next hour or so, while looking dangerous when the odd chance presented itself.

Jan Oblak stood bravely between Barcelona and goal, but his and Atletico Madrid’s resistance finally gave way with five minutes left in regulation time. By then, it was clear that it would take something special for the La Liga champions to find their way past Oblak and it was Luis Suarez who produced such a special moment.

The Uruguayan striker unleashed a perfect long-range curler that the Atletico Madrid custodian had no chance of saving. And, two minutes later, the win was rounded off as Lionel Messi finished off a counter-attacking move from the resulting kick-off. Unsurprisingly, Messi and Suarez were the players that Barcelona fans hailed post the crucial result.

Meanwhile, records and early title celebrations were on the minds of Barcelona fans, as Ernesto Valverde’s men created an 11-point lead atop the table and Messi became the individual player with the most wins in La Liga.

Finally, fans did not forget about two of the best performers for Barcelona on the night – Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet.

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