Atletico Madrid reached the last 16 of the Champions League after a dramatic 4-1 win over Club Brugge which was far from the comfortable evening the 7=4 aggregate scoreline suggests.
The two sides had drawn 3-3 in Belgium last week, and true to form, Brugge refused to lie down. Alexander Sorloth fired Atletico in front only for Joel Ordóñez to level 13 minutes later.
The tie turned in the early stages of the second half when Atleti midfielder Johnny Cardoso chested the ball down and fired it low past the despairing dive of former Liverpool man Simon Mignolet.
It was the United States international’s first goal for the club since joining from Real Betis last summer, and it gave Simeone’s side the foothold they needed.
From there, Sorloth took over, completing his hat-trick with goals in the 76th and 87th minutes.
It was only the second Champions League hat-trick in Atletico’s history, after Mario Mandzukic against Olympiakos in November 2014.
Diego Simeone’s side will now face Premier League opposition in the round of 16, set to be paired with either Liverpool or Tottenham in Friday’s draw.
Leverkusen limp through
A goalless second leg at the BayArena was more than enough to see Bayer Leverkusen comfortably past Olympiakos after last week’s 2-0 win in Greece.
It was a cagey affair, as Leverkusen, with the job already largely done, were happy to control rather than dazzle.
Who has progressed to the last 16?
From the league phase:
- Arsenal
- Barcelona
- Bayern München
- Chelsea
- Liverpool
- Manchester City
- Sporting CP
- Tottenham
From the play-offs:
- Newcastle
- Atletico Madrid
- Bayer Leverkusen
- Bodø/Glimt
