Atletico Madrid moved into second position in La Liga with a 4-0 win over Sevilla this evening.

Koke and Saul Niguez scored in the first half for the champions, before Raul Garcia and Raul Jimenez netted in the second.

Here, Sports Mole dissects the 90 minutes of action between the two La Liga rivals.

Match statistics

Atletico Madrid
Shots: 10
On target: 6
Possession: 47%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 14

Sevilla
Shots: 2
On target: 1
Possession: 53%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 16

Was the result fair?

Atletico have been criticised for some under-par performances thus far this season, but they were back to their best this evening. They dominated proceedings from the very first moment at the Calderon and there was not really a period of the match where they looked under pressure or looked to be struggling in the final third.

At 1-0 late in the first period, Sevilla would have fancied their chances in the second half, but a second Atletico goal after 42 minutes zapped the away side's confidence.

Sevilla had spells of the second period when they threatened to find a route back into the contest, but it was Atletico that added gloss to the scoreline with two goals late on. In truth, Atletico were much the better team this evening and deserved to secure all three points in comfortable fashion on their own patch.

Atletico Madrid's performance

It has been a challenging start to the season for Atletico, with new players bedding in and the loss of their manager Diego Simeone to suspension. The fact that Simeone returned to the touchline this evening and inspired Atletico to their best performance of the season is certainly not a surprise.

Defensively, the champions were much more secure this evening, while Arda Turan provided more of a link between the midfield and attack. The home team were not at their free-flowing best, but never looked likely to concede, with Miranda and Diego Godin in brilliant form at the heart of the defence.

It was always going to be a match where the first goal would be important and Atletico never looked back after taking the lead. One look at their bench tells the story of the strength of their squad this season and Antoine Griezmann made a big impression late on. They are still yet to find top gear, but now sit second in the table, just two points behind the leaders Barcelona.

Sevilla's performance

Sevilla entered this match above Atletico in the table following an unbeaten and extremely impressive start to the season. In truth, however, they never really got going this evening. It was a surprise that both Denis Suarez and Gerard Deulofeu were benched by head coach Unai Emery, with Carlos Bacca struggling for service in the final third.

The away side will feel that 4-0 is a slightly harsh scoreline and they may well have a point, but there is no getting away from the fact that they managed just two attempts this evening. Defensively they were all over the place at times, with Atletico looking like scoring each time they delivered a high ball into the box.

They were also perhaps lucky to keep all 11 players on the field following a number of late challenges, while they struggled to match the intensity on display from the home team. Sevilla will be pushing for the top four come the end of the season, but tonight shows that they are still some way behind Atletico.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Koke: The Spanish midfielder continued his impressive start to the season with a brilliant performance at the Calderon. It was his deflected effort that opened the scoring in the capital, while his clever free kick was headed home by Jimenez for the home side's fourth late on. Those were the youngster's two major contributions, but his overall performance was strong as he dictated the tempo from a midfield position.

Biggest gaffe

At 2-0 to Atletico after 83 minutes, the match was all but over, but Atletico still had the time to score twice more. The first of those came from the penalty spot after Diogo Figueiras dived into a rash challenge with Griezmann inside the box. It was clumsy more than anything, but the mistake was from a player that has enough experience to have known better. His manager Emery will surely have something to say about the challenge after the match.

Referee performance

Jose Gonzalez had a busy night in the capital, issuing seven yellow cards during the La Liga affair. Three of those arrived in the first period, but it could have been more due to the nature of the contest. Gonzalez's major decision arrived late on when Diogo felled Griezmann inside the box and it was indeed the correct call to award the spot kick. The referee was busier than he would have liked, but he got the majority of the decisions correct on a strong showing from the official.

What next?

Atletico Madrid: Atletico continue their Champions League Group A campaign at home to Juventus on Tuesday, before returning to league action away to Valencia next weekend.

Sevilla: Sevilla are in Europa League action away to Rijeka on Thursday, before hosting Deportivo La Coruna in the league next Sunday.