(MENAFN- The Peninsula) AP
MADRID: Atletico Madrid moved closer to returning to the Champions League semifinals with a 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Atletico took a first-half lead with goals by Rodrigo De Paul and Samuel Lino and outplayed Dortmund during most of the match, but the German team stayed alive thanks to a late goal by substitute Sébastien Haller.
Dortmund twice hit the woodwork in the final minutes.
The second leg will be played next Tuesday in Germany.
"We will be ready and hopefully we can put Atletico back in the semifinals of the Champions League,” De Paul said. "We will give all we have to make sure that happens, but we know that it's going to be complicated.”
Read Also
Barcelona beat PSG in thriller to seize edge in Champions League tie
In the other quarterfinal on Wednesday, Barcelona won 3-2 at Paris Saint-Germain in their first-leg match.
Atletico hasn't made it to the last four since 2017, when it lost to city rival Real Madrid. The Spanish club has won three of its last six quarterfinals.
Dortmund, the 1997 European champion, is looking to return to the semifinals for the first time since 2012-13, when it lost the final to fellow German club Bayern Munich.
Atletico needed only four minutes to open the scoring at the Metropolitano Stadium, with De Paul taking advantage of a mistake by the Dortmund defense to steal possession and find the net from inside the area.
Lino doubled the lead in the 32nd after an assist from Antoine Griezmann, who was held scoreless again but was named the man of the match.
Dortmund improved a bit in the second half and dominated ball possession, but it struggled to create many scoring opportunities against Atletico's solid defensive system.
The hosts had a few good chances to add to its first-half lead but failed to capitalize on them, then saw Haller - who has played few minutes in the Champions League this season because of injury - pull Dortmund closer with a shot from inside the area in the 81st. It was his first Champions League goal with the German club.
Dortmund hit the crossbar with a long-range shot by Jamie Bynoe-Gittens in the 87th and a header by Julian Brandt deep into stoppage time.
"When you are up 2-0 it's normal for the other team to start playing better,” De Paul said. "We had our chances to score more goals as well. Any win is always positive.”
Atletico has won 29 of its last 32 home games across all tournaments. It was Simeone's 50th Champions League win.
The result kept Atletico unbeaten in 18 knockout-round games at home in the Champions League - with its last defeat coming against Ajax in the quarterfinals in 1997.
Dortmund has won only one of its last 11 away matches in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Mats Hummels made his 500th appearance for Dortmund.
MENAFN10042024000063011010ID1108082190
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.