Dortmund hosted PSV Eindhoven at home after the first match ended 1-1 in the Netherlands. The Germans didn’t play a lot of tricks in the second leg to take the lead, as they took the lead in the 3rd minute with Jadon Sancho’s goal. The much-criticized Englishman was effective after a pass by Julian Brandt, and it looks like he is starting to find himself in Dortmund after the unfortunate detour at Manchester United, as he was also effective in the last round of the Bundesliga. Another issue is that Sancho came off the pitch in the 75th minute due to an injury…
Dortmund remained standing against PSV in the BL. Photo: EPA/FRIEDEMANN VOGEL
The only consolation was that Dortmund, playing in the field, was still leading and could progress with their goal, even though PSV could have equalized several times in the second half, for example Hirving Lozano hit the post. Then, in the 77th minute, the duel seemed to be decided: Marco Reus, who replaced the injured Sancho, found the net after a free kick by Niclas Füllkrug, but due to an offside, the goal was ultimately denied. In the end, the same pair ended the duel in a reverse formation: in the 95th minute, Reus scored from Füllkrug’s assist. The match ended 2-0, and Dortmund won the match 3-1.
Infernal atmosphere and dramatic finale in Madrid
The second leg on Wednesday evening was led by a hellish atmosphere in Madrid, where the Atlético fans insulted the star of Real Madrid, Vinícius Junior, with racist chants. In the first match, Inter won 1-0 at home. The match started from there, and Simone Inzaghi’s team could rely on their excellent form: the Milanese came to Madrid with 13 consecutive victories behind them.
In the 33rd minute, Inter also took the lead away from home. The Italian team carried out a counter attack at lightning speed, at the end of which Dimarco shot into the goal. However, there wasn’t much time to celebrate, as Atlético equalized just two minutes later: after Inter’s brief release, Benjamin Pavard even made a clumsy line, which resulted in a goal by Antoane Griezmann.
Diego Simeone is excited for his team Atlético Madrid against Inter. Photo: EPA/Mariscal
At the same time, 1-1 was still in favor of Inter, but Atlético turned the game around in the beginning of the second half. In the 87th minute, Memphis Depay received the ball from Koké, and after a turn, he shot into the goal. With this, Madrid took a 2-1 lead in the match, equalized on aggregate and saved the match for overtime. In fact, Inter, who played poorly, could be happy to have reached that point, because Atlético pressed hard at the end of regular time, they also shot the post, and Correa made a mistake.
Extra time didn’t bring a decision either, the penalty shootout followed, the key figure of which was Atlético’s goalkeeper, Oblak, who made important saves, three Inter players also made mistakes. It is true that Oblak didn’t have to save Lautaro Martínez’s last shot, the Milan team captain shot the ball badly over the top. This decided the elimination of Inter and the advancement of Atlético.
The field for the quarter-finals has been formed
The pairings for the BL quarterfinals will be drawn on Friday, the following teams remain in the competition: Atlético Madrid, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester City, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Dortmund, PSG.
Champions League, round of 16, second legs:
Borussia Dortmund (Germany) – PSV Eindhoven (Dutch) 2-0 (1-0), scorers: Sancho (3rd), Reus (95th) – advanced: Dortmund, 3-1 on aggregate.
Atlético Madrid (Spain) – Internazionale (Italy) 2-1 (1-1, 1-1, 1-1) – 3-2 on penalties, scorers: Griezmann (35th), Depay (87th) and Dimarco (33 .) – progressed: Atlético Madrid, with penalties
Cover image: defends in the penalty shootout (Photo: EPA/Kiko Huesca)