UEFA Champions League Round of 16 first leg competition continues
Two second-half strikes power Atletico Madrid past Juventus
Manchester City leave it late in Gelsenkirchen
A pair of Uruguayans did it all for Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night, as defenders Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez scored both goals, while keeping a cleansheet for a 2-0 win over Juventus in UEFA Champions League Round of 16 action at the Metropolitano Stadium.
After a scoreless first half, it looked as if Atletico forward Alvaro Morata had given his side the lead in the 70th minute by shrugging off Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini and heading Filipe Luis's service past Wojciech Szczesny. But the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) deemed that Morata had fouled Chiellini, and the Chelsea loanee's goal was erased.
A determined Morata was instrumental in setting up Atleti's breakthrough eight minutes later, once again using his head to direct a corner kick into a congested penalty area. Mario Mandzukic's attempted clearance fell directly into the path of Jose Gimenez for a sliding finish to put the hosts 1-0 up.
Juventus were done in by another set-piece in the 83rd minute, unable to properly clear Antoine Griezmann's whipped delivery into the penalty area. Diego Godin was on hand at the near post amid the chaos to beat Szczesny with his right foot.
It took late goals from Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling for 10-man Manchester City to escape Germany with a 3-2 victory against FC Schalke in the opening leg of their Champions League Round of 16 clash.
Sergio Aguero found the back of the net first to put the visitors ahead in the 18th minute, capitalising on a misplaced pass from Schalke goalkeeper Ralf Fahrmann.
But Manchester City relinquished the lead before half-time, ceding two penalty kick opportunities for Schalke No10 Nabil Bentaleb to convert in the 38th and 45th minutes.
It got worse before it got better for City. Central defender Nicolas Otamendi saw red in the 68th minute, accumulating his second yellow card for a late challenge and leaving his team to kick-start a comeback with only 10 men.
A searing 85th-minute free-kick from former Schalke winger Leroy Sane tied the match. Then Ederson picked out Raheem Sterling over the top of the defense, and the England international sealed a thrilling come-from-behind triumph in the 90th minute.
As the series head to Turin and Manchester, Gracenote gives Atletico an 83 per cent chance of advancing to the quarter-finals and Manchester City a 97 per cent chance, based on historic results in all European competitions.
Did you know?
Sergio Aguero's 34th Champions League goal tied him with Edinson Cavani in third place among non-European goalscorers, behind only Lionel Messi (106) and Didier Drogba (44)
Atletico Madrid remain unbeaten against Italian teams in the Champions League: W5-D2-L0
Manchester City have now won more away matches in the Champions League knockout stages (3) than they have won at home (2)
Atletico Madrid goalscorers Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez became the first two players from Uruguay to score for the same team in a Champions League match
Second legs Juventus v Atletico Madrid, 12 March Manchester City v Schalke, 12 March