Atletico Madrid took a firm grip of their Champions League quarterfinal as goals from Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth earned a 2-0 first-leg victory over 10-man Barcelona at the Camp Nou.
Barcelona dominated proceedings, but Atletico’s rock-solid defence, combined with swift counterattacks, paid off after Pau Cubarsi was sent off for hauling down Giuliano Simeone as the last man in the 42nd minute.
Alvarez brilliantly curled the resulting free kick from 25 metres into the top corner in first-half stoppage time to silence the sold-out Catalan stadium.
Rashford struck the crossbar from a free kick soon after halftime, but Simeone’s side remained disciplined and doubled their lead in the 70th minute when Mateo Ruggeri crossed from the left, and Sorloth volleyed in from close range, sealing a decisive away win.
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In the second match, Liverpool were beaten from first to last whistle in Paris, as defending European champions PSG took a 2-0 lead in their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal tie on Wednesday.
Arne Slot’s side is perhaps lucky the final margin wasn’t far greater. Slot dropped Mohamed Salah brought another defender, Joe Gomez, into the team in order to play with a back-five instead of a back-four. The result was Liverpool being out-shot 18-3 and having just 26 percent of possession on the night. Salah remained on the bench all game and was not subbed on at any point. The 33-year-old recently announced he will leave Anfield at the end of the season.
Desire Doue put PSG on the board early, in the 11th minute, when his shot deflected off Ryan Gravenberch and looped over the head of Giorgi Mamardashvili in goal (in place of the injured Alisson). Khvicha Kvaratskhelia made it 2-0 in the 65th with a long, winding run and a finish into an open net after rounding Mamardashvili (and a few other defenders before him).
