Atletico Madrid was eliminated from the Champions League after they missed a penalty in the 99th minute.
The LaLiga side were effectively knocked out of the competition not once, but twice, as they couldn’t convert their golden opportunity to stay in the tournament.
Their Champions League clash against Bayer Leverkusen ended 2-2, which wasn’t enough to save either side’s place in the competition, with the visitors already being out after Porto’s win earlier in the day.
Then again, it could be an extraordinary situation. AtleticoVAR offered a saving grace by sending the referee to monitor for a possible handle inside the box. This was after a corner in 95th minute.
All of this after the whistle had blown for the full duration.
Referee Clement Turpin confirmed that the ball was handled correctly and gave Atletico a penalty.
But despite a chance to stay in the competition being offered to them on a plate, Carrasco, who scored his side’s opening goal, missed it.
Lukas Haradecky was the hero, as he jumped to his left in order to save the spot kick. Atletico did not score the rebound and crashed out the Champions League.
On Wednesday, the home team was twice behind against Bayer Leverkusen thanks to goals by Callum Hudson-Odoi and Moussa Diby.
Yannick Carrasco and Rodrigo De Paul pulled them level twice, but ultimately it wasn’t enough to save their chances in Europe’s most prestigious competition.
Atletico was fifth in Group B with five points. This is a far better result than the nine points attained by second-placed Porto.
The LaLiga team will now have to fight for a place in the Europa League against Group B runners-up next Tuesday. Bayer Leverkusen is one point behind with four points.
