Lewandowski scored his 20th goal of the season with a 28th-minute penalty that went in off the post.

Barca have the opportunity to return to the top when they host sixth-placed Rayo Vallecano at the Olympic Stadium on Monday, after both their main rivals dropped points on Saturday.

Hansi Flick's Barca climbed within two points of Los Blancos and moved one behind Atletico to crank up the tension in the title race.

Julian Alvarez dinked home a controversial first half penalty for Atletico but Mbappe was in the right place at the right time to bundle home early in the second half on his first appearance in the tense derby clash.

Spanish La Liga club Real Betis launched a new kit made out of an invasive algae on Thursday to raise awareness of an ecological crisis on the Andalucian coast.

Los Blancos were beaten 1-0 at relegation-battling Espanyol on Saturday and subsequently sent a furious letter to the Spanish football federation blasting the country's refereeing as "rigged" and "completely discredited".

Barcelona sit third in the standings with 42 points, three behind second-placed Atletico Madrid and seven adrift of leaders Real Madrid.

Mbappe has hit his devastating best in recent weeks after struggling for consistency following his summer switch from Paris Saint-Germain.

The Italian coach said that he was never in doubt that the 26-year-old forward was going to find his form despite a slow start in the Spanish capital after arriving from Paris St Germain, playing in a more centralised role up front.

After Hansi Flick's side were dealt another set-back in the title race at Getafe's Coliseum stadium Balde reported the abuse in a post-match interview.

The draw leaves the third-place Catalans five points behind leaders Atletico Madrid, who lost 1-0 at Leganes earlier in the day, but Hansi Flick's side could not take advantage.

Diego Simeone's side climbed one point clear of champions Real Madrid and six ahead of third-placed Barcelona at the halfway mark in the Spanish league season.

The Brazilian winger shoved goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski in the back of the neck after he had been pushed by the Los Che stopper.

The future of Olmo and young forward Pau Victor at the Catalan giants has been on hold over a financial and administrative limbo that prevented their registration beyond 2024.

Barcelona, leaders since August, have slipped to third after winning only one of their last seven league matches, losing the top spot to Atletico Madrid in a 2-1 home loss last month.

Barca have now gone three games without a LaLiga win having picked up five points out of a possible 21, suffering defeats by Leganes and Las Palmas in their previous two home games. They are three points behind Atletico having played a game more.

Pedri sent the Catalans ahead but second-half goals from Rodrigo De Paul and Alexander Sorloth helped Diego Simeone's side move three points clear at the top of the table, having played one match fewer than Barca.

Diego Simeone's red-hot Atletico are one of the most in-form teams in Europe on an 11-game winning streak in all competitions and looking like a well-oiled machine with Antoine Griezmann, Julian Alvarez and Rodrigo de Paul firing on all cylinders.

La Liga leaders Barcelona stumbled 1-0 at home against Leganes on Sunday as they suffered another blow in the Spanish title race.

Diego Simeone's side have been in fine form and continued their winning run across all competitions with a deserved home triumph, pulling provisionally level with league leaders Barcelona.