Nahuel Molina scored a spectacular long-range strike as Atletico Madrid scraped a 1-0 win over Getafe in La Liga on Saturday to cut the gap to the top two.

Getafe was reduced to 10 men early in the second half when Abdel Abqar was sent off for appearing to pinch Atletico’s Alexander Sorloth in a sensitive area.

Atletico coach Diego Simeone rotated his line-up ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League last-16 second-leg trip to Tottenham but was still able to secure a sixth win in the last seven matches across all competitions.

The Rojiblancos, third, moved within six points of second-placed Real Madrid, which hosts Elche later on. League leader Barcelona, four points clear of Los Blancos, hosts Sevilla on Sunday.

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Defender Molina’s superb strike, lashed into the top corner from over 25 yards out after eight minutes, was enough to split the teams at Atletico’s Metropolitano Stadium.

Sorloth could have doubled Atletico’s lead but nodded Alex Baena’s cross against the post at the end of a razor-sharp counter-attack.

Getafe’s afternoon took a turn for the worse when Moroccan defender Abqar was dismissed for grabbing at Sorloth’s crotch, with the angry Norwegian striker throwing him to the floor.

Despite Atletico’s numerical advantage the visitor had the better of the second half and created good chances to equalise.

Published on Mar 14, 2026