Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez continued his deadly run of form by scoring twice on Monday night but Celta Vigo debutant Facundo Ferreyra had the final say in a 2-2 draw which interrupted the Liga leaders’ eight-game winning streak.
Atletico dropped points for the first time since losing to Real Madrid on Dec. 12 but now have 51 from 20 games and lead second-placed Barcelona and champions Real, who are third, by eight points with a match in hand on both teams.
Atletico were missing six players due to Covid-19, including record signing Joao Felix, and they fell behind in the 13th minute to a well worked goal from Celta when Santi Mina ghosted into the box unmarked to turn home a cross from Hugo Mallo.
Celta, who are without a league win in 2021, should have added to their lead but Suarez equalised for Atletico on the stroke of halftime, sliding in to meet a Marcos Llorente cross. The Uruguayan scored a similar goal to put Atletico ahead in the 50th minute, this time connecting with a Renan Lodi ball to score his seventh goal in four league games.
The strike increased Suarez’s lead at the top of the Liga goalscoring charts with 16 goals, three ahead of former Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi in second. Celta had faded in the second half after a strong display before the break but pulled level in the 89th through Argentine forward Ferreyra, who had only been on the pitch for 13 minutes after joining the club earlier this month as a free agent.
“We have to try and win home games like this but we were not comfortable at all in the first half,” said Atletico captain Koke. “We’ve conceded a lot of goals in the last few games but we have a great squad, great players and we’re going to keep thinking about the next game and now we’re focusing on our next game with Granada.”
Celta goalscorer Mina said his side earned “a good point” but lamented not building on their excellent start.
“We have a bittersweet feeling because they equalised when we had total control of the game but we kept fighting and kept believing in ourselves,” he said. Celta, who have drawn their last three games, are 10th on 26 points.


Simeone not fazed by high number of Atletico Covid-19 positives
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone said he was not overly concerned by the high number of positive Covid-19 cases the squad is experiencing after missing six players with infections against Celta Vigo.
“These are very difficult times for the world and for society and, while we try to look after ourselves, contagion is not just in Atletico it’s in society,” Simeone said. “I don’t just look at what is happening at Atletico, I look at what is happening in society, because Atletico is part of society.”
Atleti have had 15 players test positive for the virus since the pandemic wreaked havoc on global sport last March. Simeone missed part of the pre-season campaign after being infected.
Midfielders Thomas Lemar and Hector Herrera tested positive on the morning of the game, leading to the team being forced to cancel their pre-match warm up at the training ground and hold their usual meeting to prepare the game on a video call.
Record signing Joao Felix and latest arrival Moussa Dembele were among those missing after testing positive for the virus last week, adding to the absences of Mario Hermoso and Yannick Carrasco, who were infected at the end of January. “You’ll have to ask the players whether it affected them or not but we prepared the game with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement,” Simeone said. “We couldn’t have our team meeting so we prepared the game via a Zoom call and met up for the game less than two hours before, but I saw a lot of positive things on the pitch. We had a great reaction in the second half after not being able to dominate play in the first and the players showed real determination.”