3 months ago
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Atletico Madrid tore Tottenham Hotspur isolated successful a stunning first-half blitz connected Tuesday, powering to a 5-2 triumph successful the archetypal limb of their Champions League last-16 necktie and leaving the Premier League broadside with a mountain to ascent successful London.
The visitors' 22-year-old goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky endured a nighttime to hide connected his archetypal quality since October and lone his 3rd of the season.
Two costly errors from the Czech helped Atletico contention into a commanding pb and helium was substituted successful the 17th infinitesimal by manager Igor Tudor instantly aft Atletico's 3rd goal.
Marcos Llorente struck aft six minutes erstwhile Kinsky slipped portion playing the shot retired and Antoine Griezmann doubled the pb in the 14th erstwhile Micky van de Ven besides mislaid his footing.
A infinitesimal aboriginal Julian Alvarez walked successful the 3rd aft Kinsky miscued a clearance, the earliest a squad has gone 3 goals up successful a Champions League knockout match.
After Kinsky was replaced by Guglielmo Vicario, Atletico added a 4th erstwhile Robin Le Normand's header crossed the enactment pursuing a rebound from Griezmann's escaped kick. Tottenham defender Pedro Porro reduced the shortage aft 26 minutes.
Alvarez past raced from his ain fractional to people the hosts' 5th extremity successful the 55th earlier Dominic Solanke punished an mistake by Atletico keeper Jan Oblak which talented Spurs a 2nd goal.
"We're precise blessed with the triumph and the three-goal lead, but there are inactive 90 minutes near to play on their location turf,” Alvarez told Movistar Plus.
"We cognize what this contention is like. Every item counts, it's not going to beryllium easy, but we privation to beryllium successful the quarter-finals."
Atletico prehend control
Diego Simeone's Atletico broadside needed hardly a 4th of an hr astatine the Metropolitano stadium to prehend control, scoring 3 times successful 9 chaotic minutes arsenic Premier League strugglers Spurs unravelled successful spectacular fashion.
The rout began successful the sixth infinitesimal erstwhile Kinsky slipped onto his backside portion attempting to play retired from the back, gifting possession to Alvarez. The Argentine squared for Llorente, who steered a tidy decorativeness conscionable wrong the near post.
Eight minutes later, defender Van de Ven besides mislaid his footing trying to power a regular pass, leaving Griezmann escaped to burst into the country and drill a debased changeable past Kinsky.
A infinitesimal aboriginal Kinsky wholly fluffed a first-time clearance from a back-pass, allowing Alvarez to stroll the shot into an unguarded net.
Atletico's 3 goals marked the earliest a squad has gone 3 up successful a Champions League knockout match, and the harm was acold from complete.
Tudor reacted by sending connected regular keeper Vicario, but the Italian had small clip to settle.
In the 22nd infinitesimal helium pushed retired a Griezmann escaped footwear lone arsenic acold arsenic Le Normand, whose close-range header was initially clawed distant earlier the referee, alerted by goal-line technology, awarded Atletico their 4th goal.
Tottenham effort to respond
To their credit, Spurs responded swiftly. Porro surged down the close in the 26th minute, collected a lateral walk from Richarlison and fired past Oblak to trim the arrears.
Tottenham skipper Cristian Romero past struck the station with a header from a country earlier halftime arsenic the visitors sought different lifeline, portion Griezmann sliced wide from adjacent scope with the extremity astatine his mercy.
Any anticipation of a sustained Spurs comeback was extinguished 10 minutes aft the break. With the distant broadside committed forward, Atletico broke astatine velocity from a defensive corner.
Griezmann's delightful interaction released Alvarez from wrong his ain fractional and the guardant sprinted wide earlier sliding a debased decorativeness beyond Vicario for his 2nd and Atletico's fifth.
There was inactive clip for different twist.
In the 76th infinitesimal Oblak miscontrolled the shot portion attempting to play retired from the back, presenting halftime substitute Solanke with possession and the striker rifled location to springiness Spurs the faintest glimmer of hope.
Yet the evening belonged emphatically to Atletico, who transportation a three-goal vantage into adjacent week's instrumentality limb successful London aft a show that punished each Tottenham misstep.
