Barcelona and Atletico Madrid tie 2-2

The Catalan team, which improved its performance compared to previous matches, deserved more, but Simeone's men held their ground and equalized the match twice from the penalty spot. The red and whites now have a streak of thirteen official matches without a defeat.

A Barca-Atletico match always promises, even in times of a pandemic. And the match didn't disappoint from the start, with two teams committed to a heated duel played at a dizzying pace, uncharacteristic of the icy new normal of this virtual football with canned atmosphere and lacking warmth in the stands.

The red and white team was the first to threaten with a dangerous cross from Carrasco from the left that neither Diego Costa nor Gimenez were able to convert miraculously.

Barca responded with a powerful shot from Rakitic that tested Oblak, and barely ten minutes into the game, Diego Costa scored an own goal from a corner kicked by Messi. It was 1-0.

Carrasco once again caused trouble on the left flank, shortly thereafter. And how. A surge from him left Piqué sitting and, with a skillful move to line up with his right foot, he drew the penalty from Arturo Vidal.

Ter Stegen guessed Diego Costa's intentions, but the VAR - this time - decided to intervene and ordered a retake of the penalty, understanding that the Barcelona goalkeeper had moved forward. Saul replaced his teammate from the penalty spot and deceived Ter Stegen to make it 1-1 on the scoreboard.

Only 18 minutes had been played and the match met all expectations: end-to-end football full of alternatives, goals, and refereeing controversy. Atletico, as it almost always does when visiting Camp Nou, waited in the back, and Barca took the initiative through possession.

In an act of rebellion, Messi emerged in the match. A shot from the Argentine star ended with his typical left-footed curler aiming for the top right corner of Oblak's goal. The ball grazed the post.

The '10', in his eternal quest for goal number 700, also tried with an off-target shot and a too-central free-kick that the Atleti keeper sent for a corner.

Simeone's team managed to hold on until halftime but, at the start of the second half, Messi finally scored his 700th career goal by converting a penalty against Felipe using a Panenka-style shot.

Ten minutes later, Diego Costa came close to making it 2-2. He beat Arturo Vidal in the air, but headed Arias' cross wide.

Despite the response, Barca continued to be the better team. But they encountered another obstacle. Hernandez Hernandez awarded the third penalty of the night: a contact between Semedo and Carrasco.

Saul punished the left side of Ter Stegen again, this time the Barcelona goalkeeper was on the verge of saving the shot from the visiting midfielder, but the ball slipped through his fingers.

Piqué claimed a penalty by Gimenez when he tried to head towards the far post, but this time the capricious VAR didn't want to take sides, and Arturo Vidal was close to scoring the third for the hosts.

There were twenty minutes left for Setien's team, which was better than in their previous matches, to get back in the league. Once again, Vidal entered the opponent's area like a rocket to win the aerial duel against Lodi, but once again his shot missed Oblak's goal.

The coach of the Barcelona team reacted late and made substitutions, bringing in Ansu Fati with five minutes left. But he did worse with Griezmann. Playing for the championship, his coach brought him in during stoppage time against his former team with no time to make an impact.

Even so, Barca tried until the end, but it was Atletico who came close to scoring a third with a counterattack from Lemar that Jao Felix failed to convert.