Two late goals as Barcelona rallies to beat Atletico Madrid 4-2

MADRID (AP) — Atletico Madrid relinquished a two-goal lead in its 4-2 loss to Barcelona in the Spanish league on Sunday in another setback for the club after it was eliminated by Real Madrid in the Champions League.

Playing at the Metropolitano stadium four days after it lost to Madrid in a penalty shootout, Atletico led Barcelona 2-0 at halftime but conceded a pair of stoppage-time goals to waste a chance to overtake the Catalan club for second place and move within a point of Madrid.

“It was a weird game, we did well in the first half and had the game under control after scoring twice,” Atletico player Marcos Llorente said. “I do think that the 120 minutes that we had to play in the Champions League made a difference, there was a letdown in the end.”

The defeat left third-placed Atletico four points behind its two rivals at the top of the league on 60 points each, with Barcelona having a game in hand. Madrid won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday.

Lamine Yamal scored two minutes into stoppage time and Ferran Torres six minutes later to give Barcelona the gritty come-from-behind victory.

“It’s a statement win for us, allowing us to regain the lead with a game in hand,” Yamal said.

Julián Álvarez had put Atletico ahead after a breakaway just before halftime. It had been an unusual double touch by Álvarez in the penalty shootout against Madrid that led to Atletico's elimination from the Champions League on Wednesday.

Atletico added to the lead with a goal by substitute Alexander Sorloth from inside the area in the 70th. Robert Lewandowski, the league's leading scorer, gave Barcelona hope by finding the net in the 72nd, and Torres equalized with a header after a cross by Raphinha in the 78th.

“We have to congratulate them,” Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. “There was a bit of luck, which you must have sometimes. We had a few chances in counterattacks but didn’t take advantage of them. Barcelona is a great team."

Atletico beat Barcelona 2-1 when the teams met in Barcelona in their first Spanish league match of the season in December. They drew 4-4 in a first-leg match in the semifinals of the Copa del Rey last month. The second leg is in April.

Athletic Bilbao solidified its fourth place with a 1-0 win at Sevilla.

Yeray Álvarez scored with a header in the 84th to give Athletic the away victory and an eight-point gap to fifth-placed Villarreal, which has a game in hand.

It was Athletic's second win in a row after three straight matches without a victory across all tournaments. It came off a 3-1 win over Roma to reach the quarterfinals of the Europa League.

Sixth-placed Real Betis rallied from two goals down at halftime to win 3-2 at relegation-threatened Leganes, with Cucho Hernández scoring the winner in the 82nd.

The hosts had taken the lead with Dani Raba scoring in the 29th and 44th before Betis equalized through Isco in the 64th and Cédric Bakambu in the 78th.

It was the third straight victory for Betis in all competitions, and the second loss in a row for 18th-placed Leganes.

Also Sunday, ninth-placed Rayo Vallecano drew 2-2 at home with 12th-placed Real Sociedad, which is winless in six consecutive games in all competitions. Rayo is winless in five straight league matches.

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Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez, top, heads the ball past Barcelona's Marc Casado during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez, second from left, is congratulated after scoring his side's opening goal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez celebrates scoring his side's opening goal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez (19) celebrates scoring his side's opening goal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez (19) scores his side's opening goal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Barcelona's Ferran Torres, left, is congratulated by Lamine Yamal after scoring his side's 4th goal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Barcelona's players celebrate their side's third goal scored by Lamine Yamal during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Barcelona's players celebrate their side's 4th goal scored by Ferran Torres during a La Liga soccer match between Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona at the Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Wall Street was poised to open slightly lower Monday morning after U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he was pushing forward with more tariff hikes despite concerns about their impact on the economy and markets.

Futures for the S&P 500 inched back 0.1%, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.3%. Nasdaq futures were essentially unchanged.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said he has no intention to back away from another round of tariffs due to take effect on April 2.

“April 2 is a liberating day for our country,” Trump said. “We’re getting back some of the wealth that very, very foolish presidents gave away because they had no clue what they were doing.”

Trump said additional tariffs were coming on autos, steel and aluminum.

Later Monday morning the government releases its latest retail sales report, which could give some insight into the mood of the American consumer.

In January, U.S. retail sales saw their biggest month-to-month decline in a year, a much bigger drop than analysts expected. In a sector that was already bracing for a slowdown, Trump's tariffs have added another level of anxiety.

Over the weekend, the privately held Forever 21 fast-fashion chain filed for bankruptcy for the second time.

U.S. households and businesses have already reported drops in confidence because of all the uncertainties created by Trump’s barrage of on -again, off -again tariff announcements and other policies. That’s raised fears about a pullback in spending that could sap energy from the economy.

After setting a record less than a month ago, U.S. markets are coming off their fourth straight losing week, the longest such streak since August.

The uncertainty surrounding the new administration's policies has also put the Federal Reserve in much tougher spot when it meets later this week to decide its latest interest rate move.

Inflation improved last month but is still high and tariffs could push it higher. At the same time, ongoing tariff threats as well as sharp cuts to government spending and jobs have tanked consumer and business confidence, which could weigh on the economy and even push up unemployment.

Fed officials will almost certainly keep their key rate unchanged at their meeting this week, but could face a more difficult decision in the coming months if unemployment rises and inflation remains sticky.

Elsewhere, in Europe at midday, Germany's DAX rose 0.3%, as did the CAC 40 in Paris. Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.1%.

Chinese markets rose after the government reported stronger than expected factory data. Later Monday, officials briefed reporters about Beijing's efforts to get consumers to spend more, seen as key to getting the economy out of its doldrums. Most economists have advocated broad and fundamental reforms to foster greater confidence and build consumer purchasing power.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.8% to 21,144.86, and the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.2% at 3,426.13.

China's industrial output rose nearly 6% in the first two months of the year from a year earlier and retail sales were up 4%, the government reported Monday. But officials reported continued weakness in the property market, with home prices falling and investment in real estate down nearly 10% from a year earlier.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index jumped 0.9% to 37,396.52, while the Kospi in Seoul leaped 1.7% to 2,610.69.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.8% to 7,854.10 and the Taiex in Taiwan was up 0.7%. Bangkok's SET gained less than 0.1%.

Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this report.

The German stock index DAX is pictured at the stock market in Frankfurt, Germany, Thursday, March 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)