Report, reaction and analysis
Jurgen Klopp's post-match reaction
“It was not exactly what should happen but it happened,” he said of Ateltico’s early opener in an interview with BT Sport. “It was the fight we expected and the atmosphere we expected but I love so many parts of our game. It is only 1-0 down at half time and the second half we play at our stadium.”
Asked where his team came up short, he had this to say: “We lacked in the final third. They defended with all they had - their defending in the box was incredible. When you are 1-0 down with a team like this who only want this kind of result ... a scoreless draw would have been good for them.”
On the subject of Sadio Mane’s withdrawal at the interval: “He was targeted,” he says. “It was clear. They wanted to make sure he got a yellow card. It is only half-time but you need to be really strong as a referee in this atmosphere. Already in the first 30 minutes three of their players went to the ground I don’t know what for. Nobody to blame. I am fine, 1-0 down at half time we have the longest half time break and we will use that. Welcome to Anfield. It is not over yet.”
Match report: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
Andy Hunter was at the Wanda Metropolitano for the Guardian and this is how he saw the events of an interesting evening’s football entertainment unfold.
Virgil van Dijk speaks: “We knew it was going to be a proper battle tonight at their home ground and with their fans behind them,” says Liverpool’s centre-half in an interview with BT Sport. “We conceded the goal from the corner, first chance for them ... not even a chance ... it was a bit of luck.
“We had the ball most of the game but unfortunately could not create massive opportunities. We still have another 90 minutes to set it right.”
Alongside Virgil, Andy Robertson chips in with some uncharitable grumbles about Atletico’s players playacting and “falling over too easily”.
“It is the way they play,” says Virgil. “It is a bit of the Spanish football as well and you have to adapt but we knew it and I feel we handled it pretty well.”
“They celebrated as if they won the tie after the game,” says Andy. “They are coming to Anfield and we know our fans will be there.”
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Match stats
- Possession: Atletico 27%-73% Liverpool
- Shots: Atletico 7-8 Liverpool
- Shots on target: Atletico 2-0 Liverpool
- Corners: Atletico 2-8 Liverpool
- Fouls: Atletico 11-13 Liverpool
Atlético are Atlético
— Sid Lowe (@sidlowe) February 18, 2020
Meanwhile in Germany: Two goals in eight minutes from the Norwegian boy wonder Erling Haaland, either side of a Neymar strike mean things are nicely poised in the tie between Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain.
Advantage Atletico: But not by much. They put in a heroic defensive shift after taking a fourth minute lead through Saul Niguez. With their borderline demented manager calling the shots from inside (and often outside) his technical area, they restricted Liverpool to pot-shots and deliveries into the box from wide.
Jordan Henderson had the best opportunity for the visitors, but skimmed his header wide in a game where Ateltico goalkeeper Jan Oblak didn’t have to make a save. Alvaro Morata missed a golden opportunity to double Ateltico’s lead, slipping with the ball at his feet and the goal at his mercy, shortly before going off.
Full-time: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeep! Saul Niguez’s goal from close range inside four minutes separates the sides at half-time in this tie and full-time tonight. It was an attritional game; a dogged defensive performance from Atletico but no less entertaining for all that. This tie is nicely poised ahead of the return leg at Anfield.
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90+3 min: Joe Gomez is penalised for barging into Oblak at the set-piece.
90+2 min: Alexander-Arnold tries to pick out Firmino at the far post with a good cross, but an excellent defensive header by Vrsaljko prevents the Brazilian from getting on the end of the delivery. Liverpool win a corner.
90+2 min: Atletico’s fans wave their scarves above their heads, cheering what looks like being their team’s latest 1-0 triumph in Europe.
90+1 min: Diego Costa tries a shot from distance but his low drive is fairly harmless and skids tamely wide of the upright.
90 min: James Milner gives the ball away to Thomas Partey, allowing Atletico to clear their lines. On the touchline, Jurgen Klopp is going completely berserk after Vitolo goes down “injured” and wins a free-kick.
88 min: Jurgen Klopp gets booked for protesting excessively after the referee played the advantage after a blatant Lodi handball, then not taking play back for the free-kick despite there being no discernible advantage.
86 min: Liverpool get back on the ball, trying to the last to get a shot on target and possibly score an away goal. They’ll be reasonably content with a 1-0 defeat, but taking an away goal back to Anfield for the second leg would make their task so much easier.
85 min: Atletico enjoy a period of possession on the edge of the final third, which comes to an abrupt end when Lodi is flagged for offside.
82 min: Thomas Partey brings down Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the edge of the D outside the Atletico penalty area but Liverpool don’t get a free-kick.
80 min: Meanwhile in Germany, it’s Borussia Dortmund 2-1 PSG. Erling Haaland has got a brace there, with Neymar getting the away goal for the French champions.
78 min: A worrying sight for Liverpool as Jordan Henderson goes down needing treatment, with Fabinho signalling that a substitution will be required. Henderson walks off and James Milner replaces him. Play resumes with Costa heading a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner clear.
77 min: We’re into the final 15 minutes and Liverpool have an appeal for a penalty turned down after a Jordan Henderson delivery into the box appears to striker Partey on the shoulder. No spot-kick is forthcoming. Atletico substitution: Diego Costa on for Angel Correa.
74 min: A good ball into the Atletico penalty area from Origi and Jordan Henderson sends a header skimming a couple of feet wide of the upright. That was Liverpool’s best chance of the game so far, but it’s gone begging.
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72 min: Liverpool substitution: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on for Mo Salah. On the Atletico bench, Morata is applying his foot or ankle after kicking himself while slipping with the ball at his feet and the goal at his mercy.
71 min: Outstanding tonight so far, Renan Lodi tries his luck from distance but his effort curls wide of the upright.
70 min: Atletico Madrid substitution: Vitolo on for a disconsolate looking Alvaro Morata.
68 min: A foot or so from the penalty spot, Alvaro Morata slips in the Liverpool penalty area with the goal at his mercy after he’d latched on to a Lodi cross from the left. Another let-off for Liverpool.
67 min: Borussia Dortmund have gone ahead against PSG in Germany, with Erling Haaland opening the scoring in that tie.
66 min: Atletico briefly pin Liverpool back in their own penalty area following excellent hustling and harrying of Joe Gomez by Renan Lodi.
65 min: Angel Correa goes down injured after being caught by a kick on the ankle from Fabinho. He writhes on the ground in agony, like a man with fire ants in his strides
64 min: Liverpool continue to turn the screw, probing and pressing for an opening. They’re completely dominant, but Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak has yet to make a save, so compact has his defence been in front of him.
62 min: Good play from Thomas Partey, as he part-shepherds, part-barges Divock Origi out of play as the Liverpool substitute tries to get in behind him on the byline. Goal kick for Atletico Madrid.
61 min: Rodi and Savic combine to get the ball clear as Liverpool continue their almost relentless assault on the Atletico penalty area.
59 min: Niguez wastes the free-kick, clipping the ball out of play and wide, while trying to pick out a run from Llorente.
59 min: Joe Gomez is booked for a foul on Alvaro Morata in the centre-circle. Free kick for Atletico.
58 min: Mo Salah attempts to dribble through the defence from the right, but is unable to get past the portcullis.
57 min: Liverpool are trying to get the ball into the Atletico box from all angles but Atletico’s defending has been little short of outstanding. To stand resolute in the face of this onslaught must be extremely mentally draining.
55 min: Firmino wins a corner after his delivery in to the Atletico penalty area is blocked by Llorente. Liverpool take the corner short, play it to Fabinho in front of the penalty area and his delivery into the box is blocked.
54 min: Vrsaljko gives away a free-kick after fouling Divock Origi out on the left wing. Alexander-Arnold’s delivery is decent on this occasion, but Atletico clear their lines.
53 min: Joe Gomez sends a cross from deep and this time it’s a good one. Mo Salah skips between two defenders and heads a good scoring opportunity wide.
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53 min: Jordan Henderons tries to send in a cross from the right but fails to clear the first defender. Liverpool are being forced wide, but can’t get any quality crosses into the Atletico penalty area.
51 min: Liverpool win a free-kick wide on the right. Alexander-Arnold swings the ball towards the far post, where Llorente heads clear.
50 min: A bundle of energy on the touchline, Diego Simeone exhorts the crowd to get behind the home side. Meanwhile on the pitch, Liverpool concede a free-kick on the edge of the Atletico penalty area.
49 min: Sime Visaljko has the ball pulled his way in the Liverpool penalty area but is unable to sort his feet and fire off a shot in a decent area.
48 min: Fabinho loses the ball to Saul Niguez in midfield and the Atletico midfielder advances into the Liverpool half. Roberto Firmino is back to clear up.
47 min: Liverpool begin the second half as the ended the first, dominating possession and hopeful of doing something no team has ever done before in over 30 attempts - beating Atletico Madrid in a game in which Saul Niguez has scored.
Second half: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
46 min: The second half begins, with Divock Origi on for Sadio Mane in the Liverpool line-up. Marcos Llorente has replaced Thomas Lemar in the Atletico side. I suspect those changes are down to injuries, rather than any tactical reasons. Neither player was particularly poor in the first half.
Elsewhere in Europe: It’s scoreless between Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League encounter in Germany. Simon Burnton is keeping an eye on that one.
Half-time: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool
Peep! The players go in for the break, with Atletico leading courtesy of Saul Niguez’s early effort from close range. Liverpool have had more than 70% possession since going behind, but have yet to muster a shot on target.
45 min: The fourth official signals one minute of added time, which doesn’t seem much considering the VAR check after the goal, the amount of time-wasting we’ve had and a couple of pauses for injuries.
44 min: Angel Correa “leaves one in” on Jordan Henderson, earning himself a yellow card for his troubles.
43 min: Thomas Lemar sends Renan Lodi on his way down the left flank, but he runs down a dead end before he can send in a cross.
41 min: Sadio Mane is booked for catching Sime Vrsaljko around the head with an arm as he tussled for the ball with the Atletico right-back.
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39 min: Liverpool continue to dominate, despite being behind. One suspects both managers will be happy enough with how things have gone so far, although I foresee a masterclass of the dark arts from Atletico in what remains of this first leg. Diego Simeone is already instructing his players and the stadium ball boys to waste as much time as possible.
36 min: Finally, a cross worthy of the name from Trent Alexander-Arnold, after he’d created an angle for himself by taking a short(ish) corner. He sends the ball fizzing invitingly across the edge of the six-yard box but there’s nobody there to attack it.
34 min: A Mo Salah shot that appeared to be arrowing towards the top corner takes a deflection off the head of Felipe and goes over the bar for a corner.
31 min: Unable to find a way through the massed ranks of Atletico defenders grouped between them and the goal, Liverpool are reduced to taking potshots and trying to get crosses in from the left and right. Atletico will be happy with that, not least because Trent Alexander-Arnold has yet to find his range.
31 min: Fabinho tries a shot from 25 yards out and looks on helplessly as the ball zooms high over the bar.
27 min: Jan Oblak fires a clearance straight to Mo Salah, who is caught by surprise and miscontrols the ball into the path of Roberto Firmino up ahead of him. He passes back to Salah, who fires into the gaping goal, but Firmino was offside upon receiving the ball. A let-off for Atletico.
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25 min: Thomas Lemar relieves Alexander-Arnold and gallops down the left flank, before sending in a cross. Virgil van Dijk misjudges the flight of the ball, which comes to Alvaro Morata. He brings a decent save out of Alisson at his near post from a tight angle. That was a very good chance for Atletico to double their lead.
24 min: A Morata barge on Fabinho wins Liverpool a free-kick wide on the right. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s delivery is atrocious, failing to beat the first man. I think he might have put his boots on the wrong feet tonight - this is not like him at all.
23 min: Lodi appears to handle the ball just outside his own penalty area, but gets away with it. Atletico win a throw-in deep in their own territory, down near the corner flag.
22 min: Nothing comes of Atletico’s second corner, Alisson ending up with the ball safely in his grasp.
20 min: Excellent defending from Robertson, who - facing his own goal - hooks a whipped Lodi cross out of play for a corner while facing his own goal, with Atletico’s strikers either side of him.
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18 min: Atletico get a chance to clear their lines as they win a goal kick. Jan Oblak kicks it long and Virgil van Dijk wins the header.
17 min: Liverpool continue to apply pressure, while Atletico have 11 men behind the ball in and around their own penalty area. A cross in to that penalty area from Andy Robertson is headed clear by Renan Lodi, the left-back.
15 min: Having taken an early lead, Atletico seem content to sit back and let Liverpool have the ball, restricting them to sending crosses in from the flanks.
15 min: Robertson gets on the ball out on the left, but his attempted pass to Gini Wijnaldum is cut out by Koke.
14 min: Another high “shot” over the bar from Trent Alexander-Arnold, who I think was trying to send a cross in from the right.
12 min: Stefan Savic heads the ball clear of his own penalty area, intercepting a Mo Salah cross. After a shaky start, Liverpool are starting to find their groove.
11 min: Teed up by Jordan Henderson, Trent Alexander-Arnold shoots high over the bar from about 25 yards out.
9 min: On the touchline, Diego Simeone, dressed from head to toe in trademark black, is ushered back to his technical area by the fourth official after wandering downfield to roar instructions at his strikers.
7 min: Niguez picks out Angel Correa with a free-kick from deep. Darting between two defenders, the striker latches on to the ball and squares the ball across the face of the Liverpool goal. There’s nobody on hand to convert and Correa was offside anyway. Liverpool are asleep. That’s twice they’ve been caught napping inside the opening 10 minutes.
5 min: THere’s a lengthy VAR check for offside but the goal stands. The corner came in from the right, the ball seemed to clank off the shins of Fabinho standing near the six-yard box and roll towards Liverpool’s goal. Niguez was quickest to react, pouncing on the loose ball to fire past Alisson into the bottom left-hand corner from two or three yards out.
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GOAL! Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool (Niguez 4)
Atletico go ahead! Saul Niguez stabs home from two yards out to put the home side a goal up.
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3 min: Renan Lodi beats Trent Alexander-Arnold on the left flank with a drop of the shoulder and whips a terrific cross into the Liverpool penalty area. Morata gets a touch and the ball goes out for a corner.
2 min: The Wanda Metropolitano is a real cauldron as Virgil van Dijk tries to pick out Trent Alexander-Arnold with a long diagonal from the back. His pass is wayward and the ball is shepherded out of play for a goal kick.
Atletico Madrid v Liverpool is go ...
1 min: Liverpool get the ball rolling, their players kitted out in charcoal grey shirts, shorts and socks. Atletico’s wear their usual home kit of red and white stripes, blue shorts and red socks.
Not long now: The teams make their way out of the tunnel on to the Wanda Metropolitano stadium, led by referee Szymon Marciniak and his team of match officials. They line up for the last of the pre-match niceties – a blast of the Champions League anthem and some handshakes – and kick-off is just a minute away.
0 - @atletienglish have never lost at home under Diego Simeone in the @ChampionsLeague knockout stages (W8 D4). In those 12 games, they’ve only conceded two goals. Fortress#AtletiLFC #ChampionsLeague #AtleticoMadrid pic.twitter.com/SpvGwbXuyf
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) February 18, 2020
Jurgen Klopp speaks: “A big fight,” says Liverpool’s manager, when asked what he’s expecting tonight, by BT Sport’s debonair and dishy pitch side reporter, Des Kelly. “I don’t think anyone ever played Atleti and expected to get anything out of the game without a big fight. It’s in their DNA, but it’s in also our DNA. They’re really strong, we know that, but we’ve showed that we’re not too bad at that either.”
Atletico goals conceded under Simeone in CL knock-out games at home: 1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0
— Tom Allnutt (@TomAllnuttAFP) February 18, 2020
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Atletico Madrid v Liverpool line-ups
Atletico Madrid: Oblak, Vrsaljko, Felipe, Savic, Renan Lodi, Saul, Koke, Thomas, Lemar, Morata, Correa.
Subs: Adan, Gimenez, Llorente, Costa, Vitolo, Carrasco, Hermoso.
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson, Henderson, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Salah, Firmino, Mane.
Subs: Milner, Keita, Adrian, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Minamino, Origi, Matip.
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
Not much in the way of surprises in Liverpool’s line-up
I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn when I say Jurgen Klopp has selected the team most Liverpool fans were expecting.
🔴 TEAM NEWS 🔴
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) February 18, 2020
Our side to face @Atleti tonight 👊 #ATLLIV #UCL
No place in the Atletico side for Costa
Angel Correa and Alvaro Morata start up front for the hosts, while Diego Costa has to settle for a place on the bench.
[👥] 𝟭𝟭 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 to represent the Atleti Family tonight 👇
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) February 18, 2020
⚽ #AtletiLFC
⭐ #UCL
🔴⚪ #AúpaAtleti pic.twitter.com/GtSavk44Mm
Lend us your ears ...
Jonathan Wilson, Flo Lloyd-Hughes and yours truly were in the studio alongside host Max Rushden for yesterday’s episode of our Football Weekly podcast, while David Conn, Sid Lowe, Archie Rhind-Tutt and Nicky Bandini contributed from further afield. You can listen here and if you’re not already a subscriber, sign up in all the usual podcast places.
Diego Simeone speaks ...
“As you know, we deal with things one game at a time here,” said Atletico’s manager. “We will cross each bridge when we get there. We are facing a magnificent team, well trained by a coach with a difference. He can play counter, possession, they are strong in the air. I have no doubt this Liverpool side will go down in history as a great team. They are different to teams we have admired in the past. They are intense, adaptable.
Jurgen Klopp speaks ...
“This is one of the most difficult fixtures in the life of a football player,” said Liverpool’s manager during yesterday’s pre-match press duties. “Atlético are a really well organised, well-oiled machine who are amazing at squeezing results. They are in a transition period, that’s normal, but they are fighting with all they have. It’s really difficult.
“If there’s one team where you have to be at your absolute best, it’s Atlético. They give you absolutely no presents. If you work as hard as possible, you have a chance. If you don’t do that, you have no chance.”
An audience with Saul Niguez
“We know how we can hurt Liverpool, their strengths and weaknesses, and we always compete against big teams,” said Atletico Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez, in a wide-ranging interview with Sid Lowe.
Atlético tackle Liverpool in battle of opposite
Diego Simeone approaches this week’s tie against a Liverpool team whose high-tempo pressing style has come to define the modern age finding his methods being seriously questioned for the first time, writes Jonathan Wilson ...
Early team news ...
Having been on the TOttenham HOtspur side that lost in last season’s final against Liverpool, Kieran Trippier will have to make do with a view from the sidelines as he is currently recovering from groin surgery. The right-back was in St George’s Park undergoing rehab last week, but this game has come too soon for him.
Atlético will also be without their £113m summer signing Joao Felix, who has recovered from a muscle injury but has now been struck down by a virus affecting his tonsils. Hector Herrera is also expected to miss out, while Alvaro Morata and Diego Costa will be assessed ahead of today’s game.
Liverpool, by contrast, have practically a full squad to choose from, with Nathaniel Clyne and Xherdan Shaqiri constituting the entirety of their list of lame and halt. Their absence will be of little or no concern to Jurgen Klopp, who almost certainly wouldn’t have considered either player for selection had they been fit.
Champions League Round of 16 first leg: Atlético Madrid v Liverpool
With the Premier League as good is in the bag, not that anyone at the club is prepared to admit it, Liverpool are more or less free to focus on retaining the Champions League title they won at the Wanda Metropolitano last season.
They return to the scene of their sixth European triumph to face an Atlético Madrid side that are not in the best of form, fourth in La Liga with just one win in their past seven games in all competitions. Diego Simeone’s side are no mugs, however, and will be hoping to Liverpool’s first defeat in 11 knockout ties under Jürgen Klopp. Kick-off is at 8pm (GMT) but stay tuned in the meantime for team news and build-up.
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