“The penalty shootout was the icing on the cake” – Kommersant FM
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The first and only sensation in the 1/8 finals of the Champions League was created by Atletico Madrid. Diego Semione’s team knocked out Inter Milan, which many considered one of the contenders to win the tournament. The meeting in Madrid ended with a score of 2:1 in favor of the hosts. And since the first game in Italy went to Inter (1:0), it came to extra time and a penalty shootout. Kommersant FM sports commentator Vladimir Osipov followed the development of events.
During the 13 years that Diego Simeone has been head coach of Atlético Madrid, the Madrid team has been given a lot of labels. One of them is defensive football. But recently the situation is changing. And in the return match of the 1/8 finals of the Champions League with Inter, these changes were clearly visible.
Atlético started in such a way that the Milanese club was forced to fight back and even press against the goal. True, the desire to constantly play ahead led to the fact that Madrid missed the counterattack and conceded a goal, but this did not bother them at all. Antoine Griezmann, who seemed to be injured and should not have played, started. It was he who sent the first ball in this confrontation into the opponent’s net before the break. And in the second half, Atlético scored a second goal against Inter and dragged the Italian club into extra time, as the score on aggregate became a draw – 2:2.
It is not for nothing that Diego Simeone once showed the whole world a scandalous gesture from the side of the field, noting the size of what helps his team fight to the end. There is nothing wrong with the character of his players.
Passion, movement, speed – this was real league-championship football, even in two extra halves, when the players already had little strength.
The icing on the cake was the penalty shootout, where Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak pulled two goals, and at the decisive moment Inter’s star player, Argentinean Lautaro Martinez, hit high, after which commentator Konstantin Genich immediately gave a whole speech about the sensations: “Miss! And Atlético reaches the quarterfinals of the Champions League. But, friends, if the Champions League were without sensations, it would not be the Champions League.”
But in the second match of the day, where Borussia and PSV met, everything went without surprises. Although the Dutch club had options for scoring goals. But overall, Dortmund, who were the favorites, played with a clear advantage and, having scored two goals, quite rightly reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Just yesterday it could have been said that Borussia would not get further than this stage, but after Atlético’s feat in Madrid, it is better to be careful with forecasts. In addition, in the 1/4 finals it is no longer possible to call any outcome a sensation, football analyst Konstantin Kleshchev is sure, who, by the way, predicted the success of Atlético: “All contenders for victory in the Champions League gather in the 1/4 finals. No matter who wins, it will be natural to one degree or another. So, in general, we have already experienced sensations.”
Now all that remains is to find out who will play whom in the quarter-finals, where Manchester City, Arsenal, Bayern, Real Madrid, PSG, Barcelona, Borussia and Atletico Madrid qualified. An important question: at what stage will the two main favorites of the tournament, City and Real, meet? Everything will be clear tomorrow. The draw will begin at 14:00. The ceremony will be broadcast live from Switzerland by the public television channel Match TV.
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