Tonight at the Metropolitano, just as they were last Wednesday, FC Barcelona were very much the superior side. But football can be so cruel sometimes, and this season\u2019s Champions League adventure ends here.<\/p>\n
Agonisingly, everything seemed to be going to plan. Bar\u00e7a needed impressively little time to cancel out Atl\u00e9tico Madrid\u2019s two-goal advantage, and were playing the kind of football that suggested there were more goals to come.<\/p>\n
Even after Ademola Lookman got Atl\u00e9tico back on course, things were looking very promising indeed, but a third goal never materialised.<\/p>\n
A difficult task was made harder still when Eric Garc\u00eda was sent off after 79 minutes, and although Bar\u00e7a were winners on the night, it wasn\u2019t enough to reverse the damage of the first leg, and it will instead be Atl\u00e9tico Madrid who face either Arsenal or Sporting Lisbon in the penultimate round.<\/p>\n
Straight back into contention<\/p>\n
Sometimes being in control of a situation is more unsettling than not. And that was never truer in the early throes of this match, with Atl\u00e9tico looking nervous and making mistake after mistake, and Bar\u00e7a taking full advantage by needing less than half an hour to get half of the job done, cancelling out the 2-0 deficit from the first leg.<\/p>\n
Just four minutes into the game, a Cl\u00e9ment Lenglet error gave Eric Garcia the chance to slip the ball through to Lamine Yamal. The youngster had already come close to beating Juan Musso once, but this time the Atl\u00e9tico keeper had no chance and would be picking the ball out of the back of the net.<\/p>\n
He\u2019d be doing it again on 24 minutes. This time Dani Olmo was the provider, and a brilliant turn and shot from Ferran Torres made it 2-0 to Bar\u00e7a on the night, and all square on aggregate.<\/p>\n
Atl\u00e9tico pull one back<\/p>\n
That wasn\u2019t the only chance of the first half, with Musso frequently called upon to make up for his defence\u2019s mishaps, on one occasion catching Ferm\u00edn L\u00f3pez on the nose, and not for the first time in the match there was blood on the pitch. This game was as intense as it was enthralling.<\/p>\n
Atl\u00e9tico were also creating their own moments of danger, albeit in much shorter measure, but just past the half-hour, Marcos Llorente flung a cross into the blaugrana area and Lookman was on the end of it to pull one back for Atl\u00e9tico.<\/p>\n
They were no longer winning on aggregate, but the momentum was very much still with Bar\u00e7a. Atl\u00e9tico were chasing shadows as Bar\u00e7a pushed and pushed, and ten minutes into the second half the constant pressure looked to have finally been rewarded by a fine Ferm\u00edn goal. Sadly, the VAR room had spotted an offside.<\/p>\n
Eric Garc\u00eda off<\/p>\n
Despite trailing, Bar\u00e7a looked much more comfortable in the game, but as the clock ticked down, Atl\u00e9tico started to move their own football up a gear, with Joan Garcia producing a brilliant save to deny Nico Gonz\u00e1lez from point-blank range.<\/p>\n
And then came the awful moment of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu. Just as had happened to Pau Cubars\u00ed in the first leg, a red card was produced for a last-man tackle. This time it was Eric Garcia on Alexander S\u00f8rloth, and Bar\u00e7a would be playing the remaining minutes one man down.<\/p>\n
Atl\u00e9tico, who had looked rather deflated all night, had found a new lease of life, and the final minutes were as pulsating as football can get, Atl\u00e9tico chasing a tie-clincher, Bar\u00e7a trying to find a goal to take the game into extra time.<\/p>\n
There were chances for both to happen. None was closer than Ronald Araujo\u2019s header with just a minute to go. That one sailed over the bar. And with it went Bar\u00e7a\u2019s last chance of a place in the Champions League semi-final.<\/p>\n
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