The Spanish clubs experienced success in the first legs of the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday. Atletico Madrid celebrated a 2-1 home win against Borussia Dortmund (with Marcel Sabitzer), while Paris Saint-Germain had to bow to FC Barcelona 2-3 after a thrilling match. The second leg will take place on Tuesday next week.
Atletico started with enthusiasm. After Sabitzer lost the ball, Alvaro Morata ran towards the five-yard box, where his shot was blocked for a corner. Less than two minutes later, Rodrigo De Paul took the lead after a fatal mistake by Dortmund when playing out. Ian Maatsen practically laid the ball on the outside of his foot to the Argentine in front of his own penalty area, and he then had an easy time of it.
From then on, Atletico put the Germans under constant pressure, BVB saw no offensive at the Estadio Metropolitano until shortly before the end of the first half. Morata got a header from an Antoine Griezmann corner in the 19th minute, but was unable to place the ball correctly in a slightly inclined position. Before making it 2-0, Griezmann served Samuel Lino ideally in the 32nd minute, and the Brazilian then pushed in unchallenged. This was preceded by another mistake by the Black and Yellows.
After the break, Dortmund presented an improved performance, but could hardly find a way through the tight net that the hosts had created. One of the few exceptions was the scene before the 1:2, when substitute Sebastien Haller was lucky to get the ball in the penalty area. The striker didn’t hesitate after that and gave BVB a better starting position before the second leg in the 81st minute. ÖFB team player Sabitzer was replaced after a solid performance in the 84th minute. A little later, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Julian Brandt hit the crossbar.
Raphina scores a brace for Barca
The home team was also the dominant team at the start of the second game, but PSG were unable to gain anything lasting from it. After about 20 minutes, Barcelona got better into the game and an even exchange developed – with slight advantages for the guests. In the 37th minute, after a failed save by PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, Raphina was in the right place in the penalty area and scored to make it 1-0.
A double strike after the break by Ousmane Dembele (48′) and Vitinha (51′) turned the score around, but the lead didn’t last long. First, in the 62nd minute, Raphinha hit the bottom left corner of the goal with a volley, then birthday boy Andreas Christensen (77th) headed in two minutes after coming on to make it 3-2.
FC Barcelona is in the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time since August 2020. At that time there was a 2:8 rebuff from eventual champions Bayern Munich. This time coach Xavi’s team has a real chance of reaching the semi-finals.
2024-04-10 19:28:00
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