Madrid to face Arsenal after booting Atletico again

AP:

REAL MADRID beat Atletico Madrid in a Champions League penalty shoot-out – again –to keep their title defence alive yesterday and advance to the quarterfinals.

Madrid also beat Atletico in a shoot-out to win the 2016 final – part of a streak of eliminating their city rivals in four straight years.

Madrid move on to the quarterfinals to face Arsenal, who also advanced yesterday along with Aston Villa and Borussia Dortmund. The quarterfinals line-up was completed with Madrid’s win in a tense derby that ended 2-2 on aggregate score after extra time.

Atletico led 1-0 after 90 minutes and extra time in their Metropolitano Stadium to cancel out Madrid’s 2-1 advantage from the first leg last week.

Two key incidents defined regulation time. Atletico Madrid scored within 30 seconds and Real Madrid missed a penalty in the 70th minute.

Atletico took the lead with their first attack when England midfielder Conor Gallagher pounced on the ball from close range after Rodrigo De Paul’s cross was deflected.

Madrid star Vinícius Júnior blazed a penalty kick high over the Atletico goal when he could have sent the defending champion into the quarterfinals. He was substituted in extra time for his teenage fellow Brazilian, Endrick.

Arsenal rested some regulars in a 2-2 draw with PSV Eindhoven to run up a 9-3 aggregate score.

Aston Villa also had a stress-free evening at home to ensure that England have two teams in the quarterfinals, one night after Premier League leaders Liverpool were beaten at Anfield by Paris Saint-Germain.

Villa won 3-0 against Club Brugge, who played with 10 men from the 17th, after a 3-1 win in Belgium last week. Brugge defender Kyriani Sabbe was sent off for pulling back Marcus Rashford when running clear on goal.

Substitute Marco Asensio, on loan at Villa from PSG, scored twice in the second half to ensure that his temporary club will meet his parent club next.

Borussia Dortmund rallied with two second-half goals to win 2-1 at Lille and advance 3-2 on aggregate. The beaten finalist last season now face Barcelona.

The quarterfinal pairings are Arsenal vs Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain vs. Aston Villa, Barcelona vs Borussia Dortmund, and Bayern Munich vs. Inter Milan.

First-leg games are from April 8-9, and return games are one week later.