In the Champions League, Atletico Madrid became the first team to reach the round of 16 via the playoffs. In the 4:1 (1:1) in the second leg against FC Brugge, three-packer Alexander Sörloth was the man of the day, but the goalkeeping duel between Jan Oblak and Simon Mignolet was also crucial in what was actually a well-balanced game.
In the first leg, Bruges had already made life more than difficult for the favored Madrilenians. Christos Tzolis had given the outsiders a late 3-3 draw, but after a dominant game with a few moments of bad luck, his team even deserved more. It was similar for a long time in the second leg, but this time the duel between the two goalkeepers played a crucial role.
Mignolet’s first mistake is not punished, but the second is
In the 13th minute, Mignolet suffered his first of two blackouts in the first half – but in this case he was lucky. After a cross, Giuliano Simeone put the ball past the Bruges keeper and out, but Mignolet lifted his leg late on and brought his opponent down. But because the ball was already out of play and the danger was averted, the 37-year-old got away unscathed and there was no penalty.
Otherwise, Bruges were again predominantly on the offensive, the first great chance went to Hugo Vetlesen, whose shot from eleven meters was saved by David Hancko in front of his goalkeeper Oblak (18th) – and the latter used the saved energy for a slightly later moment. Five minutes later, Oblak played a shot across the entire field, Sörloth finished with just one contact and Mignolet made his second major mistake, which this time was punished with the score 0-1 (23rd).
Oblak prevents the turnaround for Bruges after an assist
Bruges had adversity back on their side after unfortunate penalty decisions in the first leg and an own goal from Joel Ordonez to make it 2-3 – but the Ecuadorian got his own personal redemption. His defensive colleague Brandon Mechele extended a corner and Ordonez nodded in at the second post to equalize (36′).
The Belgians deserved more than just the 1-1 in this phase – but like a week before, they again had a big problem, which was in Atletico’s goal: Oblak. After his assist, the 33-year-old showed another heroic act shortly before half-time when he somehow scratched Vetlesen’s header off the line with a world-class reflex and saved his team (38th).
Cardoso’s shooting power puts Atletico on track
And that ennobled their goalkeeper’s great feat at the start of the second half. Following a standard situation, Johnny Cardoso got the ball 17 meters in front of the opponent’s goal and volleyed it flat into the goal to give Atletico the lead again (48th). In this case, Mignolet had no chance because his view was blocked by a large number of players in the penalty area.
Madrid then had its most dominant phase, but after a few minutes the same game developed as six days earlier. Brugge pushed for the equalizer and repeatedly posed big problems for coach Diego Simeone’s team, especially on the flanks. But almost every time the final pass was missing, there were a few shots that posed no problem for the extremely confident Oblak.
After Sörloth’s goals, Liverpool or Tottenham are waiting
Brugge had to become more and more offensive and that gave Atletico the opportunity for a decisive counterattack. With fresh forces in attack, the hosts combined through the opponent’s limited defense and finally Sörloth had no problems in front of the goal to put together his brace (76th). And unlike in the first leg, it was obvious at that moment that the game was decided because Brugge lacked the power up front.
Sörloth then even went one better, after a short corner Erling Haaland’s Norwegian national team colleague was there again and finally put the lid on it with his third goal and the 4-1 (87th). Sörloth had already impressed as a joker in the first leg, then scored twice against Espanyol Barcelona (4-2) at the weekend and now shot his team into the round of 16 of the Champions League.
For most of the 180 minutes, Bruges defied the favorites and was close to a surprise for a long time. In the end, Atletico prevailed thanks to Sörloth (also played for RB Leipzig) and world-class goalkeeper Oblak, who made the difference in both games. The Slovenians will also play in the round of 16; on Friday the draw will decide who the opponent will be. One thing is already clear: Atletico will face Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur.
