Molina rocket helps Atletico beat 10-man Getafe

MADRID—A spectacular long-range strike from Nahuel Molina and a moment of second-half controversy combined to give Atletico Madrid a hard-fought 1-0 La Liga victory over neighbours Getafe at the Metropolitano on Saturday.

The Argentina full-back lashed an unstoppable shot into the top corner from more than 25 yards after eight minutes, settling a tight contest that turned on the 55th-minute dismissal of Getafe defender Abdel Abqar.

Abqar was shown red following a VAR review after appearing to grab Alexander Sorloth in the groin area during an off-the-ball tussle. The Moroccan centre-back protested his innocence, insisting he had merely been trying to locate his opponent by touching his stomach.

“It was not my intention to touch the player in this area,” Abqar told Movista. “You see it in every game—touching, clashing—but I never thought about touching him there.”

Sorloth reacted angrily, throwing Abqar to the turf, and the officials sided with the striker after reviewing the footage.

Atletico goalkeeper Juan Musso backed the decision: “These are things that happened 30 years ago. Before you could do this; now there is no place for these things.”

Down to ten men, Getafe still pushed for an equaliser. Mauro Arambarri fired over when clean through, and in stoppage time Adrian Liso’s header was clawed away by Musso as the hosts clung to their slender advantage.

The win, Atletico’s sixth in seven matches across all competitions, trims the gap to second-placed Real Madrid to six points ahead of Los Blancos’ evening kick-off against Elche. League leaders Barcelona, four points clear of Real, host Sevilla on Sunday.

Diego Simeone rotated his starting XI with Wednesday’s Champions League last-16 second leg at Tottenham in mind, but the much-changed side still found a way to prevail, even if the performance lacked the swagger of Tuesday’s 5-2 rout of Spurs.

Sorloth nearly doubled the lead late on, crashing a header against the upright from Álex Baena’s cross after a lightning counter, yet Molina’s early thunderbolt ultimately proved enough to keep Atletico’s momentum intact and deepen Getafe’s relegation worries.