Following their hard-fought 1-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, Atletico Madrid faced another difficult prospect at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, facing off against a Sevilla side that had won 16 from their last 18 home games. However the hosts also took part in a European excursion, with Unai Emery's side having travelled to and from Monchengladbach for a Europa League game.

Looking to keep up with Real Madrid and Barcelona, El Cholo benched Mario Mandžukić and Fernando Torres, so Arda Turan partnered Antoine Griezmann up front. For Sevilla, there was ground to make up in the race for the top four, with Valencia beating Real Sociedad 2-0 earlier in the day.

The first-half was a cagey affair. It took 15 minutes for a clear-cut opportunity to be crafted, but when it did, it was a big one. Vitolo dribbled past two players down the right-hand side and fired in a cross, which Tiago unwittingly stumbled towards his own goal. A fine reaction save from Moyá amended the error and kept the score level.

It was a let-off for Atlético, who looked lethargic and created very little. Their highlight of the half was 20-yard free-kick that Griezmann sent sailing harmlessly over. Sevilla threatened more. On 27 minutes, Éver Banega swung in a ball for Iborra, whose first-time finish struck the post. Five minutes later, Bacca wriggled loose inside the box after good interplay down the right, but the Colombian slipped as he fired over.

Yet Sevilla were unable to translate their dominance of possession into goals. Fernando Navarro did have a decent opportunity on 38 minutes, ghosting in behind a crowded penalty area to meet Vitolo’s corner, but his header went wide. Moments later, referee Clos Gómez sent the home fans into rage by blowing for half-time at the very moment Coke was tripped in what would have been a dangerous free-kick position.

Nonetheless, Sevilla looked far more energetic than their opponents. They upped the tempo early in a second half that opened with string of bookings: inside 10 minutes, yellow cards had been shown to Grzegorz Krychowiak, Jesús Gámez, Griezmann and Mario Suárez. The latest foul, by Suárez, drew a free-kick that Alejandro Arribas met from close range, but Moyá saved the defender’s downward header.

Beyond a looping attempted chip from Griezmann, Atlético had offered nothing after the interval. Simeone replaced Turan with Torres, and it almost paid off immediately. On the hour-mark, El Niño galloped free down the left, but his dangerous square ball for Griezmann came a bit too far behind the Frenchman.

With the game in the balance, Torres went close once more. Having knicked the ball from Krychowiak on the half-way line, he stormed forward, skipping past the recovering midfielder again. After doing well to work himself into a shooting position, Torres dragged his angled shot wide of the post. At the other end, Vitolo bent a 20-yard curler off target. However, despite their intentions to steal the win, neither side managed to.

It is a result that ultimately suits neither side. Simeone will be furious to have seen his side drop more points, seemingly gifting the title race to Barcelona and city rivals, Real Madrid. Meanwhile Sevilla failed to make up ground on the Champions League chasing rivals Valencia, who incidentally sit just one point behind third-placed Atleti now.

The hosts face a trip to Deportivo next weekend, and Marcelino will eager to ensure his side return to winning ways. For Atletico, they host Valencia at the Calderon, in a game that could potentially decide who finishes the season in third-place.

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About the author
Jack Benson
Aspiring football journalist. Twitter: @_JackBenson