Atletico’s Julian Alvarez double kick penalty was ruled out as Real Madrid cruised past their city rivals 4-2 on penalties to set the quarter-final tie with Arsenal in the Champions League.
Englishman Conor Gallagher started the game for Atletico Madrid with a bang, scoring in the first twenty-seven seconds, making it all square on aggregate to Real Madrid’s first leg win of 2-1.
However, no one from either side was able to manage to find the net at full time. Extra time was given, but both teams failed to score a goal again. The game was then decided on penalties.
Kylian Mbappe started the shootout for Madrid by finding the net. Sorloth also scored for Atletico, but it was the second controversial penalty of Julian Alverez for Los Colchoneros which went against them.
Alvarez’s double kick penalty, which found the net, was disallowed by the video assistant referee (VAR) as he slipped while taking it, which decided the fate of the game, and Real Madrid won the knockout game by 4-2 on penalties.
Antonio Rudiger put the final nail in the coffin by striking before the match was 2-3, giving his team a chance to extend their record to 16 Champions League titles.
Real Madrid will face the English club Arsenal in the quarterfinal on the 9th and 17th of April 2025.
Ancelotti Relieved as Madrid Secure Victory:
Real Madrid’s boss, Carlo Ancelotti, was more relieved than joyful about Real Madrid’s victory. Players and fans of the record Champions League winner club were celebrating while their head coach Ancelotti was relieved; he was worried at the time of play, he thought if the opposition had scored one more goal then the game could have gone out of Madrid’s control.
“I have tried to explain to my players that the priority was not to make the game more complicated than it already was,” Ancelotti told a press conference.
“We made it more difficult by losing unnecessary balls that constantly found us out of position. If they had scored 2-0, then the game could have got out of control. We played better as the game progressed, had our chances, but we need to improve in our focus and concentration,” he said.
“We always strive for improvement. It was a balanced match, and any mistake could have been costly. Of course, we wanted to finish the game before penalties, but here we are still fighting and competing, as is the tradition at this club.”
