Atletico Madrid missed the chance to move clear at the top of La Liga as they had captain Gabi sent-off in a 1-0 shock defeat at Malaga on Sunday night.

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With Barca not in La Liga action this weekend as they competed in the Club World Cup, Atletico could have moved three points clear with victory against struggling Malaga.

But a red card proved to be Atletico’s downfall too as their nine-game winning run came to an end after Gabi carelessly picked up two bookings in five minutes just after halftime.

Malaga striker Charles had been denied by two fine saves from Atletico ‘keeper Jan Oblak in the first-half, but just when the hosts were becoming desperate the Brazilian finally found a way through four minutes from time when his deflected effort off defender Diego Godin sneaked in at the near post.

Elsewhere, Celta Vigo held on to fourth spot with a 2-0 victory over struggling Granada. Fabian Orellana put Celta ahead with 21 minutes gone and Iago Aspas’ goal just before half-time clinched the points.

It was Celta’s third victory in a row and kept them a point ahead of Villarreal who earned a first away league win since September thanks to Denis Suarez’s brace, ending Real Sociedad’s recent resurgence.

The Yellow Submarine were without a goal – never mind a win – in their previous four matches on the road, but made amends at the Anoeta.

Suarez’s strikes towards the end of each half ended that frustrating run and Sociedad’s three-match unbeaten streak in all competitions.

Athletic Bilbao continued their push for European football with a comfortable 2-0 win over Levante.

The Basque side have not lost at home since September and that record never looked likely to end, with Mikel San Jose and Inaki Williams scoring second-half goals.