Match report: Goal fest fuels quarter-final dreams | OneFootball

A goal fest at the Metropolitano, where Atlético de Madrid secured a good haul for the return leg in London. A match filled with unprecedented moments, such as a substitution in the first 15 minutes after conceding three goals, a series of errors that inflated the goal tally, and a late-game clash of heads between two players from the London team that left them out of play, with their coach making no substitutions to replace them.

That’s not to mention a couple of actions by the English team’s players that could easily have ended in red cards. One in the first half, after a clear foul by Van de Ven on Hancko at the edge of the box, which the referee didn’t even call as a foul. The second came in the second half, when Richarlison fouled Marcos Llorente, leaving him with a wound on his ankle.

In short, there were plenty of emotions in a match where the goals and celebrations for Atlético started early, with a mistake by Kinsky that led to the first goal in the 5th minute. The ball reached the spider, who passed it to Marcos Llorente, who scored the opener with a quality finish. It didn’t take long for the rojiblancos to score the second goal, after another slip by the Londoners, which provided a timely opportunity for the little prince in the 14th minute, resulting in the second goal of the match.

A disaster for the visitors that continued two minutes later, with another mistake by the goalkeeper, leaving the ball for Julian Álvarez, who scored easily to make it 3-0 with just a quarter of an hour played. A festival that seemed endless, prompting the Spurs coach to substitute his goalkeeper to avoid further damage at the Metropolitano, no matter how controversial his decision might have been.

The tally continued minutes later, when Vicario, now in goal for Spurs, made a great save but couldn’t prevent a follow-up from Le Normand, which technology confirmed as a goal after the ball had completely crossed the goal line. The 4-0 seemed like it would be the final score, but fate had more goals in store, and Spurs’ goal in the first half also came early, on a counterattack where Richarlison set up Pedro Porro, who beat Oblak in the 26th minute.

There would be no more goals in the first half, with both teams easing the pace a bit, but still with chances to increase the tally, such as Lookman’s powerful shot in the 33rd minute or a header off the post by Cuti Romero in the 36th.

SECOND HALF WITH GOALS, VICTORY, AND A GOOD ADVANTAGE FOR THE RETURN LEG

Ten minutes into the second half, we witnessed a play that could have defined the match and the course of the tie. Oblak made a stunning save from a Richarlison shot, leading to a clearance by Ruggeri, which fell to Griezmann’s feet. He delivered a divine pass to Julián Álvarez, who sprinted across the entire Spurs half like the star he is, almost alone, chased by Pedro Porro but unreachable, finally slotting it past the far post to score Atlético’s fifth goal of the night.

Once again, a four-goal lead, going from 4-2 to 5-1, which gave the team a lot of peace of mind. But the party was not complete, due to a lack of understanding between Oblak and Nico González, who was already on the pitch after replacing the spider. This led to a steal by Pedro Porro, who passed to Solanke, who blasted past the Slovenian keeper.

A shame, because a three-goal lead seemed small after seeing the calm and superiority with which Atlético had managed the match against the Londoners.

The ending brought more of a scare than excitement, after a back pass from Koke to Sørloth, who controlled the ball very high, leading to a clash of heads between Cuti Romero and Palhinha, leaving both unable to continue. With just one minute left, the referee avoided further complications and blew the final whistle. A great victory and a great advantage for the return leg. The quarterfinals are closer after this exhibition at the Metropolitano.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.