Jan Oblak the penalty hero before Lautaro Martinez's dreadful miss sends Atletico through vs Inter

Atletico Madrid book spot in Champions League quarter-finals
Marc Mayo13 March 2024

Jan Oblak was the hero as Atletico Madrid dumped Inter Milan out of the Champions League on penalties.

A night after David Raya’s double save sent Arsenal into the quarter-finals via a shootout, the Slovenian goalkeeper made two of his own before Lautaro Martinez skied the decisive kick as last year’s finalists were sent home.

Atletico have been incredibly strong in their own backyard all season and this was Diego Simeone’s 50th Champions League match in charge of the club at home - having lost only five of the previous 49.

A goal down from the first leg, a raucous atmosphere drove the LaLiga side on in the opening exchanges as Samuel Lino tested Yann Sommer, but Inter possessed a threat on the counter and Oblak denied Denzel Dumfries twice in quick succession.

The visitors were awarded far too much time and space on 33 minutes as Nicolo Barella raced down the left to tee up the unmarked Federico Dimarco, who doubled his side’s aggregate lead with a powerful finish.

However, Atleti rallied instantly and Antoine Griezmann buried a poacher’s finish to level up on the night after a loose touch from an Inter defender spun the ball his way.

Inter began their bid to sit back and control the game as the second half wore on, and yet missed a glorious chance to seal the tie when Martinez’s perfect pass removed four defenders and sent Marcus Thuram clear - only for the Frenchman to lash his shot over.

The Italians soon began to lose their composure as the volume and temperature rose in Madrid, the home fans on their feet after Memphis Depay’s introduction helped change the game in their favour.

The striker saw the ball taken off his toe in the six-yard box before Nicolo Barella failed to make the most of another Inter break, and moments later Depay slammed the post with a fierce snapshot. He was not to be denied however, as he collected Koke’s intelligent pass on 87 minutes and slammed home to level the tie.

Heading to extra-time, Atletico coach Simeone urged calm and yet his team still should have won the tie in normal time, after Griezmann’s fine pass was leathered over the bar by substitute Rodrigo Riquelme.

The game remained open in the first period of extra-time but Thuram, Depay and Martinez all failed to make the most of decent chances to break open the deadlock, before a predictably cautious approach from both teams sent the game to penalties.

Two perfect spot-kicks, from Hakan Calhanoglu and Depay, proved not to be a sign of what was to come as Alexis Sanchez, Saul Niguez and Davy Klaassen saw their consecutive attempts saved. Riquelme put Atletico ahead and despite Francesco Acerbi giving Inter a chance, Martinez skied his effort to end the tie.

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