Atletico Madrid took a significant step towards the UEFA Champions League semi-finals with an impressive first-leg victory over FC Barcelona at the Nou Camp.
Diego Simeone’s side, who had not won at the venue since 2006, delivered a clinical performance, with Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth scoring in either half to seal the advantage.
Barcelona dominated large spells of the encounter but saw their momentum halted just before the break following a pivotal moment involving Pau Cubarsi.
The defender was initially shown a yellow card by referee Istvan Kovacs after bringing down Giuliano Simeone, who was through on goal. However, following a VAR review, the decision was upgraded to a red card.
Alvarez stepped up and curled the resulting free-kick into the net to give Atletico the lead heading into half-time.
Despite being reduced to 10 men, Barcelona responded strongly after the restart and pushed for an equaliser, with Marcus Rashford coming closest when his free-kick struck the crossbar.
However, Atletico struck again to compound the hosts’ misery, as Sorloth finished off a low delivery from Matteo Ruggeri to double the lead.
The result leaves Barcelona with a mountain to climb ahead of the second leg in Madrid next Tuesday, as Atletico close in on a place in the last four of the UEFA Champions League.
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