Disappointing Madrid derby ends in goalless draw

Madrid, Sep 29 (IANS) Atletico de Madrid and Real Madrid faced off once again in La Liga's classic derby, this time marked by little flair and a lot of muscle, that ended in an unremarkable 0-0 draw.A dangerous late header by Madrid's French striker Karim Benzema was spectacularly saved by Atletico's Czech goalkeeper Jan Oblak, who dove at full stretch and stopped the seemingly unstoppable with a sturdy left hand, thus preventing the clearest scoring chance in a match that otherwise saw few opportunities to enliven the static scoreboard on Saturday night.The result, which surely disappointed fans from both sides, allowed Madrid to remain on top of the Spanish league standings with 15 points as it continued its unbeaten domestic start (four wins and three draws), while its neighbour and arch-enemy now trails by one point in third place, right behind a surprising Granada, reports Efe news.The big beneficiary of the goalless duel was FC Barcelona, which was able to bridge the gap with both teams from the capital following its 0-2 away victory against Getafe, leaving it in fourth place with 13 points.
--IANS kk/pgh/bc