Liverpool hosted Atletico Madrid last night in the second leg of the Round Of 16 in which the Spanish side progressed thanks to some help from Adrian!
Atletico won the first leg 1-0 thanks to a goal inside the first five minutes. Liverpool struggled to create anything, but at 1-0 they were still confident of turning it around. The Spanish side were the slight favourites at 17/20, with Liverpool priced at 10/11 to progress.
Liverpool were dealt a huge blow before the game. Alisson had been ruled out due to injury which would go on to have a huge impact!
With the Premier League pretty much wrapped up, and Liverpool out of the FA Cup, they could now concentrate on this competition. They won it last year, beating Spurs in the final, and were looking to reach their third final in three years.
This was going to be a fascinating game, with Atletico renowned for their fantastic defending, and Liverpool with their devastating front three!
Love it 🔥 pic.twitter.com/O8iFI6boqD
— This Is Anfield (@thisisanfield) March 11, 2020
Adrian aids Atletico
From the first whistle, it was clear to see Atletico and Simeone’s plan. They had set up to sit back and hit Liverpool on the counter-attack with the pace of Joao Felix. Liverpool looked in control and dangerous, forcing Oblak into some very good saves early on.
They got their first goal in the 42nd minute through Wijnaldum, the man who started the comeback against Barcelona last season. The Dutch midfielder heading the ball down and into the left-hand side of the goal.
Atletico didn’t panic though as all they need was one goal and Liverpool would then need two. In the second half, it was much of the same with Liverpool controlling the game. Again Oblak making great saves and the crossbar denied Robertson a late winner.
The game went into extra time and Firmino gave Liverpool a vital lead, following up his header that had rebounded off the post. This was the Brazilians first goal at Anfield this season. Minutes later though Llorente, who had come on as a sub, capitalised on an Adrian mistake. The keeper passed it to Felix who played in Llorente, who finished it brilliantly into the bottom right corner.
Llorente then got another after Liverpool failed to close him down. An effort from outside the box going into the bottom right corner again. Liverpool now needed two to go through and with time running out they threw everything forward. This played into Atletico’s hands who sealed the game when Morata scored in the 120th minute for the game to finish 4-2 on aggregate and the current Champions League holders were out.
Atletico will now go into the quarter-finals full of confidence after beating Liverpool. They are priced at 12/1 to go on and win the competition.
