Atletico Madrid claim well-deserved victory against Real Betis to return to La Liga top four

Atletico Madrid claimed a well-deserved 2-0 victory over Real Betis on Monday to move up to fourth place in La Liga and respond to last week's Champions League humiliation at Arsenal.

Diego Simeone's side, beaten 4-0 in north London, produced a composed performance at the La Cartuja stadium, where Betis are temporarily playing, to claim their first away win of the season.

It was also only their second clean sheet in nine matches in all competitions, a sign of renewed defensive discipline from a team that has looked unusually fragile in recent weeks.

Giuliano Simeone, the coach's son, opened the scoring early on with a neat volley from the edge of the box – his first goal of the campaign.

Summer signing Alex Baena doubled the lead before half-time, curling in a fine effort to score his first for the club and cap off a dominant first-half performance.

Goalkeeper Jan Oblak then praised the resilience of his teammates. “It was an important, hard-fought victory,” he told Movistar. “We struggled away, so hopefully this is a turning point.”

Betis improved after the break and went closer when Abde Ezzalzouli hit the crossbar from a free kick, but Atletico's backline, led by José María Giménez and Danilo, held firm.

The win leaves Atletico eight points behind leaders Real Madrid, the only team they have beaten so far this season. Giuliano Simeone dedicated his goal celebration to his newborn nephew Faustino, Diego Simeone's first grandchild.

“Nothing changes for me,” the Atletico coach joked after the match, while praising his son for his performance.

Manuel Pellegrini's Betis remains sixth, three points behind Atletico. “We lacked clarity in the final third,” admitted Giovani Lo Celso. “But we worked hard and the fans were with us until the end.”