Atlético hold off Barça as PSG also reach Champions League semis
Barcelona's Pedri and Madrid's Julian Alvarez battle for the ball during the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Barcelona at Riyadh Air Metropolitano. Samuel Carreno/News Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Atlético Madrid fought off Barcelona's charge in a pulsating clash and holders Paris Saint-Germain finished off Liverpool on Tuesday to both reach the Champions League semi-finals. Barça headed to Atlético 2-0 down from the quarter-final first leg, yet early goals from Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres gave them hope of a memorable comeback against their Spanish rivals.
But Ademola Lookman's finish later in the first half handed the hosts a 3-2 aggregate lead and a red card for Eric García after a professional foul on 79 minutes effectively ended Barcelona's dream. "We're absolutely delighted. Barcelona are such a top-class side.
We put in a brilliant performance over there and the team managed to bounce back today," said Atlético captain Koke, whose side eliminated the Catalans in a Champions League quarter-final for the third time. Atléti have never won Europe's top club prize but the 1974, 2014 and 2016 runners-up are back in the semi-finals for the first time since 2017 after edging the five-times champions. Diego Simeone's side next face Arsenal or Sporting, who play their second leg on Wednesday.
Ousmane Dembélé scored twice as PSG won 2-0 in rainy north-west England and 4-0 on aggregate to seal a meeting with Bayern Munich or record winners Real Madrid in late April and early May. "It's the little things that make the difference in a match. We managed to stay strong and defended well," PSG skipper Marquinhos, who made a last-ditch tackle to deny Virgil van Dijk, told Canal+.
PSG won their first Champions League title last term after ditching the idea of collecting world stars and instead building a young team. The plan has continued to pay dividends this season and a 2-0 win at the Parc des Princes last week set them up perfectly to deal with Tuesday's Anfield second-leg cauldron, where they also progressed last season in the last 16. Liverpool's luck was summed up by Hugo Ekitiké going off with a serious-looking injury as Mo Salah came off the bench.