Atleti tighten grip on second

Atletico Madrid warmed up for their Europa League semi-final second leg against Arsenal with a 1-0 victory at Alaves.

Kevin Gameiro netted a late penalty to ensure the victory in an ill-tempered La Liga fixture, with Fernando Torres seeing a penalty saved and Angel Correa sent-off late on.

Alaves shot-stopper Fernando Pacheco kept out Torres’s effort in the 71st minute but could not stop Gameiro seven minutes later as the visitor’s ended a run of three games without a win.

Diego Simeone’s men now host Arsenal on Thursday after a 1-1 first-leg draw at the Emirates, with a spot in next month’s Europa League final up for grabs.

Atleti remain second and have opened up a four-point gap to Real Madrid, who have a game in hand, while Barcelona – 11 points clear at the top – have won the league.

Alaves: Sivera (Pacheco 63'); Alexis, Laguardia, Maripan, Dieguez Grande; Sobrino, Pina, Wakaso (Garcia 79'), Alfonso; Guidetti (Ibai 72'), El Haddadi

Atletico Madrid: Werner; Thomas, Savic, Lucas, Vrsaljko; Correa, Gabi, Koke (Godin 62'), Vitolo; Torres, Costa (Gameiro 63')

Tags Diego Costa
La Liga - Club News