Atletico Madrid's hopes of defending their La Liga title suffered a serious blow as Celta Vigo recorded a shock 2-0 victory at the Estadio de Balaidos.

It was a disappointing start to the match for the champions, who were without Koke, Raul Garcia and Arda Turan, as they struggled to retain possession and were pushed onto the back foot by Celta for long spells.

Despite a promising first-half display from the hosts, chances were rare for both sides, with Miranda making a vital clearance to deny Joaquin Larrivey following good work by Nolito.

Atletico's sluggish play in the early stages forced Diego Simeone into a change before the break as he introduced Mario Suarez to replace the ineffective Tiago.

A second change followed at the interval as Cani replaced Fernando Torres, who had been given a start alongside Mario Mandzukic.

It was Celta who were gifted the chance to open the scoring when Suarez brought down Nolito in the box, despite appeals for a handball by Augusto Fernandez earlier in the move.

Nolito stepped up from 12 yards to slot home the penalty, but the lead was threatened moments later when Sergio was forced to make a double save from Saul and Antoine Griezmann.

Celta should have punished Atletico when Nolito found the space to pick out Larrivey, who could only fire wide from a great position in the box.

Griezmann tested Sergio again with a powerful low strike at the end of a clever run, and the save would be crucial as Celta doubled their advantage in the 71st minute.

An impressive passing move from the home side caught Atletico out of position at the back, and Fabian Orellana took full advantage to beat a helpless Miguel Angel Moya with an emphatic finish.

The second goal killed off the Atletico challenge, and Simeone was powerless to prevent his side from suffering a defeat which leaves them trailing leaders Real Madrid by seven points and second-placed Barcelona by six.