Champions League: Atletico Madrid 5 (Llorente 6, Griezmann 14, Alvarez 15, 55, Le Normand 22) Tottenham 2 (Porro 26, Solanke 76)
Tottenham’s Champions League campaign is all but over after Antonin Kinsky’s error-strewn display proved the catalyst for a punishing 5-2 loss at Atletico Madrid to heighten scrutiny on Igor Tudor.
Tudor hinted he may experiment for the last-16 first leg given Premier League survival was the priority, but his decision to play 22-year-old goalkeeper Kinsky backfired in spectacular fashion.
Kinsky’s scuffed clearance contributed towards Marcos Llorente’s sixth-minute opener and after Micky van de Ven slipped to allow Antoine Griezmann to make it 2-0, a terrible start turned into a nightmare.
READ MORE
Van de Ven passed back to Kinsky and another miscued pass by the Czech keeper allowed Julian Alvarez to walk the ball in, before Tudor replaced the shell-shocked youngster in the 17th minute on a horror 13th appearance for the Premier League club.
Spurs went 4-0 down after 22 minutes when Robin Le Normand headed in before some spirit was shown as Pedro Porro and Dominic Solanke scored in between another for Alvarez at the start of the second half.
The day had started with Tottenham fans serenading old boss Mauricio Pochettino on a flight to Madrid ahead of being invited to the match by Atletico and concluded with Tudor losing a fourth straight match to put the interim head coach on the brink after only 29 days.
Newcastle 1 (Barnes 86) Barcelona 1 (Yamal 90+6)
Lamine Yamal denied Newcastle a priceless victory with the final kick of the game as Barcelona snatched a draw which sends them into next week’s return as favourites to make the Champions League quarter-finals.
The Spain international struck from the penalty spot in the sixth minutes of added time to cancel out Harvey Barnes’ 86th-minute opener after substitute Dani Olmo had been tripped by defender Malick Thiaw.
A 1-1 draw was harsh on the Magpies, who had enjoyed the better of the game and looked to have grabbed a precious advantage to take to the Nou Camp next Wednesday evening in front of Tino Asprilla, whose hat-trick in a 3-2 victory over Barca in the same competition in 1997 remains one of the most famous nights in the Tyneside club’s history.
Eddie Howe’s men were left to lick their wounds but when the dust settles, they will be able to reflect upon a performance which made life distinctly uncomfortable for the five-time winners, who knew they were in a game on the night and will have to steel themselves for more of the same on their own pitch.
Atalanta 1 (Pasalic 90+3) Bayern Munich 6 (Stanisic 12, Olise 22, 64, Gnabry 25, Jackson 52, Musiala 67)
Bayern Munich dismantled Atalanta 6-1 in a dominant Champions League last-16 first-leg performance, seizing control from the outset in Bergamo.
The visitors surged into a three-goal lead within the opening 25 minutes, leaving the home side struggling to gain any sort of foothold in the contest.
Dominating possession with fluid attacking play, Bayern dictated the pace throughout the match, with Michael Olise at the heart of the attack, scoring a goal in each half.
Josip Stanisic, Serge Gnabry and Nicolas Jackson were also on target for Bayern before Jamal Musiala completed the scoring with a precise close-range volley in the 67th minute.
Mario Pasalic pulled one back for Atalanta deep in stoppage time, though the goal failed to lift the hosts’ spirits.
