Atletico Madrid have moved level on points with Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table courtesy of a 3-0 victory over Granada this evening.
Diego Simeone's side dropped down to third when city rivals Real Madrid won earlier in the day, but goals from Koke, Fernando Torres and Angel Correa saw them pile the pressure on Barcelona ahead of their meeting with Valencia this evening.
The hosts could have been ahead after less than two minutes when Koke collected the ball on the edge of the penalty area, but he fired his subsequent effort narrowly over the crossbar.
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They wouldn't have to wait much longer for the opener, though, as it arrived with just quarter of an hour on the clock when Koke allowed a pass from Torres to run across his body before firing home from inside the area.
Atletico's resolute defence had managed to keep out Barcelona in midweek as they progressed to the semi-finals of the Champions League, but Granada were inches away from breaching them shortly after the half-hour mark when Ruben Rochina hit the post from the edge of the box.
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It was a rare threat from the visitors, though, and Atleti gave themselves a cushion 15 minutes into the second half when Koke and Torres reversed roles, with the midfielder playing a ball through for the striker to poke underneath the keeper and score for a fourth game in a row.
The hosts were then able to kill the game off once and for all with just seven minutes remaining when Saul Niguez flicked the ball on for Correa, who raced away from the defence before keeping his composure to slot his finish past Andres Fernandez.
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The victory makes it 14 home league games without defeat for Atletico and moves them back up into second place, with just one point now separating the top three in the table.
Granada, meanwhile, are now winless in six and remain just one point above the relegation zone.
Barney Corkhill
