Nigerian Ademola Lookam scored to help Atletico Madrid reach the UEFA Champions League semi-final, squeezing past Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate despite a 2-1 home defeat at the Metropolitano in Madrid, Spain.
Diego Simeone’s side thought they had done much of the heavy lifting with a 2-0 win at the Camp Nou in the first leg but that cushion was wiped out by an early Barca blitz as the visitors struck twice in the first half to level the tie.
Winger Lamine Yamal capitalised on a Clement Lenglet error to open the scoring for Barcelona in the fourth minute, finishing neatly past goalkeeper Juan Musso after Ferran Torres set him up.
Torres then made it 2-0 in the 24th, racing clear onto Dani Olmo’s pass and driving the ball into the top corner.
Atletico, rocked but not floored, found a lifeline in the 31st minute. Marcos Llorente burst down the right and drilled a low cross to the far post, where Lookman outpaced his marker and fired inside the left post to restore the hosts’ aggregate lead.
Barcelona dominated possession after the break and had a third goal ruled out for offside against Torres as Pedri and Gavi controlled the midfield.
Barca finished with 10 men after a last-man challenge brought a red card for defender Eric Garcia and Atletico held on to secure a place in the last four against Arsenal or Sporting who play on Wednesday with the London side leading 1-0.
“That’s football for you – it all comes down to the little details,” Barca coach Hansi Flick told reporters.
“We need to improve in certain areas, but in terms of mentality and attitude… the team gave it their all. That’s exactly what we want to see. They did a fantastic job, but we didn’t quite make it.