BARCELONA — Radamel Falcao scored his 21st goal in the Spanish league this season to give 10-man Atletico Madrid a 1-0 win over Espanyol Sunday, ensuring the team stays in second place before its Copa del Rey semifinal. Falcao slotted a spot kick into the lower left corner of the net in the 37th minute at Vicente Calderon Stadium after one of several well-worked moves with strike partner Diego Costa. Atletico played the entire second half a man down after midfielder Gabi Fernandez was sent off, but Espanyol failed to utilize its advantage. "Our first half was good, but even with the dismissal our second half was even better," said Atletico coach Diego Simeone. "Our effort was extraordinary." Elsewhere, Real Betis rolled over Malaga 3-0, Valladolid won 2-1 at Rayo Vallecano, and Celta Vigo beat Granada 2-1 in the debut of coach Abel Resino. Atletico bounced back from the end of its Europa League title defense Thursday in which it lost to Rubin Kazan with a 13th win in as many home games in the league this campaign. The victory kept Atletico 12 points behind Barcelona and maintained its four-point gap over Real Madrid. It visits Sevilla Wednesday in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal with a 2-1 lead. Betis climbed into seventh place, while Malaga stayed in fourth place just one point ahead of Valencia. This is the second loss for Malaga in six days after it fell 1-0 at FC Porto in the opening leg of their last-16 tie in the Champions League. Balotelli silences taunts Mario Balotelli of AC Milan was subjected to racial taunts by fans of his former club Sunday, but he kept his composure and held a finger to his mouth to signal for quiet. Inter supporters waved inflated bananas and whistled at Balotelli, who is of Ghanian descent. He was facing Inter for the first time since transferring from Manchester City to Milan last month. He gestured to the fans in the second half of a game that ended 1-1. Balotelli had three scoring chances, notably a header in which goalkeeper Samir Handanovic made a spectacular save. "Balotelli did very well not to react to the provocations, I'm just sorry he wasn't able to score," Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri said. "He had a great first half. Let's not forget that he's 22 years old and he was playing against his former squad. It's to be expected that he felt pressure for this match." Balotelli played for Inter from 2006-10, helping the club to three titles in his final season with the team. He already has four goals for Milan. The derby ended 1-1. — Agencies
