Atletico Madrid took a step towards reaching the Champions League semifinals by defeating Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in the first leg of the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Atletico scored two goals in the first half through Rodrigo De Paul and Samuel Lino, dominating most of the match. However, Dortmund managed to stay in the game with a late goal from substitute Sébastien Haller.
Dortmund posed a threat towards the end of the match and hit the woodwork twice in the final minutes. The second leg will take place in Germany next Tuesday.
“We’ll be prepared and hopeful to see Atletico back in the Champions League semifinals,” said De Paul. “We’ll give our all to make it happen, but we know it won’t be easy.”
In the other quarterfinal match on Wednesday, Barcelona won 3-2 against Paris Saint-Germain in their first-leg encounter.
Atletico hasn’t reached the semifinals since 2017, while Dortmund is aiming to return to that stage for the first time since 2012-13.
“We have to accept today’s result,” said Dortmund captain Emre Can. “It’s tough to play here because they defend very well. We’ll take the 2-1 result and everything is open for next week.”
Atletico quickly opened the scoring in the fourth minute, with De Paul capitalizing on a defensive error from Dortmund. Lino doubled the lead in the 32nd minute with an assist from Antoine Griezmann, who was named the man of the match.
“In the second half, they had more possession and pushed us back,” said Griezmann. “We could have scored a third goal, but we suffered a lot in the second half.”
Although Dortmund improved in the second half, they struggled to create clear chances against Atletico’s strong defense.
Atletico had opportunities to extend their lead in the second half but couldn’t convert them. Haller’s goal in the 81st minute gave Dortmund hope, marking his first Champions League goal for the club.
