Atletico Madrid strengthened their pursuit of La Liga leaders Barcelona after securing a narrow 1-0 victory over Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium on Saturday.

The decisive moment arrived in the 89th minute when Spain international Alex Baena struck from the edge of the penalty area to earn Diego Simeone’s side all three points. The goal followed a pass from Julian Alvarez, who had come on as a substitute.

The result extended Atletico’s winning run to six consecutive matches across all competitions, underlining their growing momentum as the Spanish league campaign continues.

Despite Atletico’s attacking efforts, Espanyol made life difficult for the visitors with a disciplined defensive performance. Leandro Cabrera came close to opening the scoring in the first half, but his effort struck the crossbar.

Atletico also hit the woodwork after the break when Marcos Llorente tested Espanyol’s defence with a long-range effort. The visitors continued pressing, but the breakthrough did not come until the closing stages.

Baena, who has been in strong form this season, earned praise from Simeone after the match. The Atletico coach described the midfielder as a player capable of causing significant problems for opponents and highlighted his current form.

Goalkeeper Jan Oblak then made a crucial stoppage-time save to deny Pol Lozano and preserve Atletico’s advantage. The victory moved Atletico to within two points of Barcelona ahead of the leaders’ match against Real Betis later on Saturday.