Atletico Madrid moved into second spot in La Liga with a 2-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday.
The home side led 1-0 at the break following a close-range effort from Saul Niguez.
Atletico's second arrived soon after the break, when Modibo Diakite found his own net from close range under pressure from Arda Turan.
Here, Sports Mole dissects the 90 minutes of action in the Spanish capital.
Match statistics
ATLETICO
Shots: 8
On target: 4
Possession: 53%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 16
DEPORTIVO
Shots: 3
On target: 1
Possession: 47%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 18
Was the result fair?
This was not the prettiest match of the season, far from it. However, it was another composed and professional performance from Atletico, who certainly deserved to claim all three points. Not too much happened in the first 45 minutes, but the home side were the more inventive in the final third and deserved to lead at the interval.
Depor emerged with a greater purpose in the second period, but Atletico's second after 55 minutes all but ended the away side's challenge. The visitors had their moments on the counter-attack, but registered just one attempt on target, which is an indication of their struggles.
Atletico's performance
Since losing to Real Sociedad before the international break, Atletico have won their last three games in all competitions, with victory against Deportivo moving Diego Simeone's side into second spot in the table. They were without key players in the shape of Miranda and Gabi, but those that came into the XI, particularly Jose Gimenez, were extremely impressive. It took a little bit of time before the home side really made their mark, but they never looked in danger after taking the lead through Saul. Much of the second period drifted by after Atletico had scored their second, with chances few and far between in the final 30 minutes. It was the type of performance and indeed result that helped Simeone's team win the title last season, and three points were imperative as the capital outfit continue to chase down Real Madrid at the top of the division.
Deportivo's performance
While Depor had some bright moments on Sunday afternoon, the newly-promoted outfit did not register a single attempt on target until the final five minutes, with centre-back Sidnei testing the palms of Miguel Moya. In total, they had just three attempts and never looked like breaking Atletico's resistance, even when the score was goalless. Depor's approach was quite simple - flood the defence and attempt to break - but lone forward Helder Postiga did not have the pace to trouble Atletico. Depor have managed to tighten their defence in recent weeks, with just two goals conceded in their last three games, but they have now gone three league games without a goal and that might well be their Achilles heel this season. The away side did manage to restrict Atletico to very few clear chances, however, and they can take some positives away from their afternoon in Madrid.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Arda Turan: Turan will attempt to claim his side's second of the match, but it does appear that Diakite will be awarded the goal after replays showed that the defender turned into his own net from close range. That said, the Turkish international would gain this award regardless. The attacker radiated class each time that he had possession of the ball and made something happen each time he found space in the final third. It was another classy performance.
Biggest gaffe
Atletico have scored a large bulk of their goals from set pieces this season and indeed both of their strikes in this match came from that particular avenue. Depor would have been all too aware of that statistic before the match, but that did not stop them from conceding needless free kicks outside their own box. Time after time they presented Atletico with dangerous positions and the Spanish champions eventually made them count.
Referee performance
Jose Teixeira had an eventful first half at the Vicente Calderon, issuing four yellow cards during what was a feisty first 45 minutes. His involvement dried up in the second period, however, with the challenges quietening down. Teixeira was not seen for long spells and did not really have a major decision to make.
What next?
Atletico: The Spanish champions are in Copa del Rey action against L'Hospitalet on Wednesday, before returning to league duty away to Elche next Saturday afternoon.
Deportivo: Depor welcome Malaga in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday evening, before hosting the same opponents in the league on Saturday.
Matt Law
