- Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres’ brilliance counts for nothing as Atletico 3-2 aggregate win breaks Barca hearts
- Another tactical nightmare from Coach Slot sees Liverpool suffering 0-4 aggregate loss to PSG
In a match that saw them falling short in a stirring Champions League comeback attempt, FC Barcelona ran out of steam against Atletico Madrid at the crucial moment, wasting brilliant displays from Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres on Tuesday night.
Trailing 2-0 on aggregate after the first leg, a Yamal and Torres-inspired Barca were unable to see off their domestic rivals despite leveling the encounter in a scintillating 25 minutes display at the Metropolitano.
Yamal was the protagonist literally from the first whistle, forcing a save after 30 seconds before opening the scoring inside four minutes as Clement Lenglet’s error was brutally punished before Dani Olmo spurned a one-on-one chance in a frantic opening.
Antoine Griezmann came close to settling the rattling Atletico nerves, but just moments later it was 2-0 as the hosts failed to clear and Torres was played in to finish with aplomb. Atleti’s capitulation was almost complete straight from the restart as another Lenglet giveaway led to Fermin Lopez’s point-blank header drawing an excellent stop from Juan Musso.
Out of nowhere, though, Diego Simeone’s side hit back to restore their aggregate lead, as a blistering counterattack ended with Ademola Lookman converting a pinpoint cross on the half-hour mark. There was still time for Torres to have another effort smothered in a breathless first period.
The second half would be a different story altogether, as Atletico finally found their feet and moved into the ascendancy while their visitors ran out of steam. Lookman fired just wide and Robin Le Normand went close twice in quick succession either side of another Torres goal being disallowed for offside.
Barca’s momentum dipped and their fate was sealed in the 80th minute when Eric Garcia got the marching orders for a last-man foul on Alexander Sorloth following VAR intervention on his trip and an initial offside call.
Then, with 90 seconds left, sub Ronald Araujo squandered a golden opportunity, nodding over from point-blank range to seal a heartbreaking 3-2 aggregate exit.
PSG Rip Liverpool Apart 4-0 In Slot’s Tactical Horror
Everything went wrong for Coach Arne Slot as his Alexander Isak gamble backfired badly and Hugo Ekitike’s injury compounded a miserable Champions League exit for Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday night
The Reds’ hopes of salvaging a shocking season evaporated in a miserable night on Merseyside as an Ousmane Dembele double earned Paris Saint-Germain a 2-0 away victory that saw Luis Enrique’s men progress to the semi-finals of the Champions League 4-0 on aggregate.
Seeming as if no lessons were learnt from the first leg at the Parc des Princes, Coach Arne Slot got his starting line-up all wrong, with the Reds boss sensationally deciding to hand Alexander Isak his first start since recovering from a broken leg earlier this month.
The Swede was inevitably a non-entity for the 45 minutes he lasted on the pitch and, to make matters worse, Liverpool lost Hugo Ekitike to a serious-looking injury during a tight and tense first half in which PSG dominated possession but needed captain Marquinhos to deny Virgil van Dijk a tap-in with an unbelievable goal-line block.
The hosts were much-improved after the break but despite the belated introduction of Rio Ngumoha were unable to find a way through PSG, and Dembele killed the contest with a fine finish from the edge of the area after a swift counter-attack from the reigning European champions, before adding a simple second late on.
