Atletico Madrid defeated Real Madrid 2-1 in a fiery Madrid derby on Sunday, to secure a crucial victory for Diego Simeone’s side.

Real Madrid were reduced to 10 men early in the second half when Dean Huijsen was sent off for pulling down Giuliano Simeone inside the box. Grimaldo converted the resulting penalty to give Atletico the lead.

Jonathan David doubled Atletico’s advantage in the 59th minute, finishing Giuliano Simeone’s low cross for his third goal in three matches.

Antonio Rudiger pulled one back for Real Madrid late in the game with a header from Bernardo Silva’s cross, but Atletico held on to claim all three points.

The result moved Atletico into second place, five points behind leaders Barcelona and one point ahead of Real Madrid, who suffered their second defeat of the campaign.

The match was dominated by controversy, with Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho unhappy with two first-half challenges involving Cristian Romero and Lee Kang-in.

Mourinho argued that both incidents should have resulted in red cards, claiming Real Madrid could have faced an even tougher task after Huijsen’s dismissal.

The first half produced little in terms of clear chances, with Vinicius Junior, Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham largely kept quiet.

Atletico came close to adding a third after Julian Alvarez’s effort was saved by Thibaut Courtois, while Ibrahima Konate cleared Grimaldo’s rebound off the line.

Jan Oblak also denied Real Madrid substitute Yan Diomande as Atletico survived late pressure to secure the derby victory.

Atletico midfielder Koke said the result showed his side could compete for major trophies.

“We can compete against every team if we give 100 percent,” Koke said. “Madrid are one of the best in the world and today we showed that.”

Atletico goalkeeper Oblak, meanwhile, acknowledged that his side could have kept a clean sheet but said the victory was the priority.

“It was important to win, but La Liga is very long,” he said.