Foxes fury as controversial decision leaves English champions facing an uphill battle
ANTOINE GRIEZMANN’S controversial first-half penalty handed Atletico Madrid a tight 1-0 win over gutsy Leicester in their Champions League quarterfinal first leg.
The France striker was fouled outside the box by Marc Albrighton but referee Jonas Erikssson pointed to the spot – yet the Foxes’ European hopes remain alive.
It was deja vu for Leicester after another dubious penalty at the Vicente Calderon helped knock them out of the UEFA Cup in 1997.
They will also have to overturn a deficit at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday without Robert Huth, who is suspended after collecting his third booking of the campaign.
But the Foxes, who failed to create a meaningful chance, will be encouraged they are in the tie and still have a chance of booking a stunning semi-final spot.
They defended well and were vigilant, although Atletico’s onepaced second-half performance played into their hands.
But they were caught by a lightning break when Griezmann burst clear on the left on 27 minutes.
The striker went to sprint into the area but he was clipped by Albrighton and referee awarded a penalty – despite Griezmann being clearly outside the area.
There were echoes of 1997 – when Delfi Geli went down softly under Steve Guppy’s challenge to win a penalty in their UEFA Cup meeting – but Griezmann ignored the debate to beat Kasper Schmeichel.
“It was plain and obvious to see, and it has ruined our game plan,” said Schmeichel.
“It is a decision that is tough to take when it is so clear and obvious. We should have had something from this but we have to accept it.
“We made a challenge outside of the box. They might have scored from that free-kick but obviously there is a much better chance of scoring from the penalty. But it was never a penalty.”