Monaco’s offence does the job
MONACO Midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko’s thumping header sent Monaco through to the Champions League quarter-finals as the home side beat Manchester City 3-1 on Wednesday to progress on the away goals rule in another pulsating match between two attack-minded sides.
City fought back from 2-0 down and was momentarily in control after midfielder Leroy Sane’s 71st-minute goal. But six minutes later Bakayoko rose imperiously to meet Thomas Lemar’s curling free kick and restore the two-goal margin Monaco needed as the contest finished 66 on aggregate.
“If you analyze the two games, Monaco deserved to go through. I think over the two games we played better than City,” Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim said. “Even in the first leg, City had a bit of luck.”
City coach Pep Guardiola lamented the fact that his side had failed to compete in the first half.
“At this level, you have to play more than 45 minutes. We only played for 45 minutes,” Guardiola said. “The gap between the first and the second halves is there. You ask me why? It’s the same question I am asking myself.”
Trailing 5-3 from the first leg of their Round of 16 match, Monaco’s Kylian Mbappe scored from close range in the eighth minute. Fabinho made it 2-0 in the 29th.
Madrid through
MADRID — Goalkeeper Jan Oblak made a series of great saves as Atletico Madrid held Bayer Leverkusen to a 0-0 draw on Wednesday and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the fourth straight season.
Oblak came up big every time Leverkusen got close to his goal, proving crucial for Atletico as it protected its 4-2 first-leg victory in the Round of 16.
Oblak made three spectacular consecutive saves midway through the second half to end Leverkusen’s hopes of overturning the defeat in Germany.