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In the only Thursday match of the Spanish championship, which ended the 29th round, "Sevilla" defeated "Atletico" in Madrid with a score of 1-0. The match lasted almost forty minutes longer than planned, as it was stopped when various objects were thrown onto the pitch from the stands.
75` [0-1] Antonio Puerta
72` Peter Luccin was sent off ("Atletico")
80` Martin Petrov was sent off ("Atletico")
85` Luis Perea was sent off ("Atletico")
The match at the "Vicente Calderon" stadium started with a fierce battle, and "Atletico" goalkeeper Leo Franco even saved two penalties from eleven meters. The Argentine goalkeeper saved a penalty from F. Kanoute in the fifteenth minute, which was awarded for Peter Luccin's foul on Javier Saviola.
Fifteen minutes later, another penalty was awarded to "Atletico" for a handball by Madrid's defender Antonio Lopez. However, once again, L. Franco demonstrated an excellent reaction and saved J. Saviola's attempt.
The turning point in the match happened with eighteen minutes left until the end of the match, when P. Luccin received a second yellow card for a foul on Daniel Alves. "Sevilla" needed just three minutes to take advantage of the numerical superiority and take the lead: Antonio Puerta received the ball in the left side of the penalty area after a defender's mistake and beat the goalkeeper.
The referee did not immediately count the goal, but only did so after consulting with the assistant referee regarding offside. When the referee decided to count the goal, various objects started to be thrown onto the pitch, and the referee's patience ran out when he saw a large full glass bottle.
After listening to a complaint from "Sevilla" goalkeeper Andres Palop that various objects thrown from the stands had hit him several times, the referee interrupted the match, and both teams were escorted off the field.
However, the match was resumed after about 40 minutes, when most of the fans had already left the stadium. Just a minute later, Martin Petrov was sent off for a second yellow card, and five minutes later, defender Luis Perea was also shown a second yellow card.
After this match, "Sevilla" climbed to fifth place with 48 points, guaranteeing a ticket to the next year's UEFA Cup tournament.
League table
