Madrid – Atletico Madrid climbed above Barcelona into second in the La Liga when Saul Niguez and Arda Turan fired the champions to a 2-0 win at home to Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday.
The match at the Calderon was marred by a street battle between dozens of rival fans a few hours before kickoff in which emergency services said one Deportivo supporter had been critically injured.
Saul put Atletico ahead two minutes before halftime and Arda made it 2-0 10 minutes into the second half to lift Diego Simeone’s side to 29 points from 13 matches, four behind leaders Real Madrid.
It was Atletico’s fifth victory in their last six La Liga outings as they seek to defend the Spanish title they won last season for the first time in 18 years.
“We came into the game after two wins and we wanted to continue the run,” defender Diego Godin told Spanish TV.
“Our opponents respect us and they know we are a difficult team to play here at home,” added the Uruguay international, who said the troublemakers outside the ground “do not represent football or any team”.
“This curse must be eradicated from football,” he said. “The Atletico and Depor fans do not deserve to have their image damaged by a few.”
Real set a club record of 16 straight victories in all competitions when they won 2-1 at Malaga on Saturday.
Barca can climb back above Atletico into second, two points behind Real, with a win at fourth-placed Valencia later on Sunday. – Reuters