Coming to Wanda Metropolitano has never been an easy challenge for any team, even the "giants" Barcelona. However, the match against Atletico in round 15 of La Liga 2019-20 is considered a good opportunity for Barca to win.
This stems from the erratic performance of the Madrid team this season. Coach Diego Simeone and his team have only won 6 out of the first 14 rounds in La Liga. Not only that, before this match, Atletico had a bad start when they lost 0-1 to Juventus in the Champions League.
However, as a habit, Atletico always know how to make things difficult for Barca at their home ground. Simeone's side took the initiative to play with a deep-lying formation, giving Barcelona control.
This style of play not only helps Atletico neutralize all attacks of the away team but also creates many quality counter-attacks. If Hermoso had been luckier in the 7th minute, the home team would have taken the lead early.
Simeone's students did not need to ban many players but still had 6 shots towards Barca's goal. On the contrary, the home team only passed through quite a bit.
However, that only lasted for about the first 20 minutes. In the second half of the first half, the balance of the match was established. Both teams have their own opportunities but neither side can take advantage of them successfully.
Entering the second half, both teams were more proactive in their playing style. Barca has many smooth combinations, enough to make it difficult for Atletico's disciplined defense.
Meanwhile, the home team also had moments of dominating the opponent with continuous shots from Morata, Correa and Lemar. Without the talent of goalkeeper Ter Stegen, Barca could not have preserved the net.
On the other side of the front line, Jan Oblak also proved why he is one of the top goalkeepers in Europe at the moment. The Slovene goalkeeper was only once defeated by Messi's crafty curling shot in the 86th minute. This was also the only goal of the match.
In the end, Barcelona won against Atletico with a minimal score. Thanks to that, Messi and his teammates have reclaimed the top spot from arch-rivals Real Madrid. Meanwhile, coach Diego Simeone and his team have dropped to 6th place in the La Liga rankings with only 25 points after 15 rounds.
