RB Leipzig would remember this season in their history fondly forever, as a late Tyler Adams’ deflected strike plunged them into their first Champions League semi-finals to give them a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid in Lisbon.
The Bundesliga side proved very solid in front of goal despite being without star man Timo Werner, and opened scoring five minutes into the second half when Spaniard Dani Olmo headed home Marcel Sabitzer’s cross.
Atletico Madrid drew level thanks to a penalty won and converted by Joao Felix who joined the match from the subs bench with 19 minutes to go.
With the clouds of extra-time forming, Leipzig turned the tie in their favour, snatching a win from the subs bench, all thanks to USA’s Tyler Adams ,whose low drive deflected into the back of the net past a helpless Jan Oblak via Stefan Savic’s outstretched leg.
Julian Nagelsmann’s side will now face French champions, Paris Saint-Germain who themselves snatched a win late on in their quarter-final tie against Italian side Atalanta on Wednesday night, for a place in the final on Tuesday night.
Read more: Atletico Madrid reveals names of players who tested positive to coronavirus, PSG stage a stunning comeback against Atalanta to grab CL semi-final ticket
Watch the highlights of the match below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxkU64Mgx_8
Atletico Madrid would be disappointed with the outcome of the match after vanquishing title holders Liverpool in the previous round to enter this last-eight tie at the Estadio Jose Alvalade as favourites, but it was the German side who threatened early on in the Portuguese capital, with defender Marcel Halstenberg blasting over from close range to waste a good early opening.
Atleti gained a foothold gradually in the contest, with Yannick Carrasco testing Peter Gulacsi at his near post with a fierce drive.
However, it was the Germans who struck the first blow as Dani Olmo finished off from a Marcel Sabitzer’s cross following a well-worked 18-pass move just after the interval.
The goal, as well as the introduction of Atleti’s £113m playmaker Joao Felix, pumped adrenaline into their bloodstream with the 20-year-old Portugal international levelling the scores after a neat one-two with Diego Costa drew a foul from Lukas Klostermann and led to a clear-cut penalty.
Atletico appeared to have dropped the momentum to kill off the game after that and suffered fatal consequences as RB Leipzig won the game late when Adams, unmarked on the edge of the area, drove his side into the Champions League semi-finals, albeit with the help of a big deflection off Savic’s outstretched leg.
Stats and facts from the match (Backed by Opta)
- RB Leipzig are the first German side outside of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund to reach the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League since Schalke in 2010/11.
- Atlético Madrid have failed to progress against a German side in the Champions League knockout stages for the first time ever, getting through on all previous three occasions (v Bayer Leverkusen twice and Bayern Munich once).
- Atlético Madrid have scored in each of their last 19 games in all competitions, last enjoying a longer scoring run in 2012 (24 games).
- RB Leipzig’s Dani Olmo is the first Spaniard to score against Atlético Madrid in the Champions League since Míchel netted for FK Qarabag in October 2017.
- Marcel Sabitzer registered his 26th goal involvement in all competitions for RB Leipzig this season (16 goals, 10 assists), eight more than any other player currently with the German club.
- Tyler Adams’ strike was his first ever goal for RB Leipzig in what was his 28th appearance in all competitions for the club.
- Atlético Madrid’s Kieran Trippier became just the fourth different English player to start a Champions League quarter-final with a non-English club (also David Beckham with Real Madrid and PSG, Owen Hargreaves with Bayern Munich and Steven McManaman with Real Madrid).
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