Dortmund defeat Atléti to reach UCL semis!

Borussia Dortmund 4-2 Atlético Madrid
Goals: 1-0 Brandt 34 (assist: Hummels), 2-0 Maatsen 39' (assist: Sabitzer), 2-1 Hummels 49' (o.g), 2-2 Correa 64', 3-2 Füllkrug 71' (assist: Sabitzer), 4-2 Sabitzer 74' (assist: Füllkrug)

Sébastien Haller's late goal in Madrid last week gave Dortmund a lifeline and meant they came into this clash just one goal behind rather than two. The Ivory Coast striker was unavailable here due to injury, but his teammates were eager to make sure his strike was not in vain from the off. Within three minutes, Marcel Sabitzer had a glorious opportunity to put BVB in front on the night and level things up overall, yet César Azpilicueta produced a stunning goalline clearance to deny him. While the visitors wasted a golden opening themselves shortly after when Álvaro Morata chipped wide when one-on-one with Gregor Kobel, Dortmund otherwise dominated and ultimately had two first-half goals to show for their efforts. First, Julian Brandt took advantage of a marvelous outside-of-the-boot Mats Hummels pass to fire past Jan Oblak, before Ian Maatsen buried into the bottom corner from a similar position when played in by Sabitzer. Given how the hosts attacked the match early on, their lead was more than deserved.

At the interval, Atleti boss Diego Simeone made three changes, and the switch-up had an almost-immediate impact. An Antoine Griezmann corner found Mario Hermoso in the penalty area, and although Hummels tried to clear the ball away from danger, he instead poked it out of Kobel's reach. Los Colchoneros continued to push forward and looked to retake the aggregate lead - which they eventually did through Ángel Correa after he and fellow half-time substitute Rodrigo Riquelme had attempts kept out. There was still plenty of time left for twists and turns, though and, remarkably, Dortmund needed fewer than 10 minutes to take control of both this encounter and the whole tie. Niclas Füllkrug, who had been quiet up until that point, headed Sabitzer's cross into the far corner before the Austrian turned goalscorer himself, firing a strike home from outside the box with a little help from Oblak's outstretched fingertips. As Atleti opened up, there were further chances for Dortmund to put the match to bed, but, despite Oblak doing fantastically to deny both Füllkrug and Sabitzer, Die Schwarzgelben had already done enough. They will now face Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-finals and, based on this showing, there is no reason why they can't go another step further and make the final in London at the start of June.

• Dortmund have lost just one of their previous 18 Champions League matches at Signal Iduna Park.
• Overall, these teams have met seven times in European competition, with each side winning three apiece. There has been one draw. 
• The opener was Brandt's first goal in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
• Maatsen's effort was his maiden strike in Europe's premier club competition.
• Dortmund are in the semi-finals of this tournament for the first time since 2012/13, when they went on to reach the final before losing to Bayern Munich.
• Dortmund have never lost a Champions League knockout match at home against Spanish opposition (W4, D2)

Teams

Dortmund: Kobel - Ryerson, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen - Can (c), Sabitzer - Adeyemi (Bynoe-Gittens 66'), Brandt (Reus 90'), Sancho (Özcan 86') - Füllkrug 
Unused subs: Meyer, Lotka, Nmecha, Duranville, Wolf, Moukoko, Süle, Wätjen
Out: Bensebaini (knee), Haller (ankle), Malen (knee)
Coach: Edin Terzić

Atlético: Oblak - Witsel, Giménez, Hermoso - Molina (Barrios 46'), Llorente, Koke (c), De Paul (Saúl 84'), Azpilicueta (Riquelme 46')- Griezmann, Morata (Correa 46')
Unused subs: Moldovan, Gomis, Gabriel, Savić, Vermeeren, Reinildo, Niño
Out: Depay (muscular), Lemar (Achilles), Lino (suspended), Vitolo (knee)
Coach: Diego Simeone 

As it happened!

Sébastien Haller's late strike gave Borussia Dortmund a lifeline despite a 2-1 defeat to Atlético Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final clash.

Atlético Madrid 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
Goals: 1-0 De Paul 4', 2-0 Lino 32' (assist: Griezmann), 2-1 Haller 81'

The weekend's 1-0 Bundesliga defeat to VfB Stuttgart was hardly the best preparation for his clash, and Die Schwarzgelben started slowly at the Wanda Metropolitano. Only a crucial, last-gasp Karim Adeyemi block prevented Álvaro Morata from breaking the deadlock within two minutes, although the hosts had their lead shortly after. A poor Gregor Kobel pass put Ian Maatsen under pressure, and the left-back could only play the ball into the path of Rodrigo de Paul, who had the simple task of striking into the bottom corner. Dortmund remained under the cosh, with Kobel keeping an albeit tame Samuel Lino overhead kick out. In the 31st minute, they had their first real opening as Felix Nmecha headed over from a corner, but Atlético were two to the good almost immediately. Again, some slack passing allowed Los Rojiblancos to break quickly, and Lino kept his composure to slot beyond Kobel following a cheeky Antoine Griezmann flick. As the half-time whistle approached, Maatsen forced Jan Oblak into an important stop low to his right with a fierce strike and Jadon Sancho fired over from close range, offering hope that BVB could threaten after the interval.

With Diego Simeone's men happy to protect their advantage in the second half, the onus was on Dortmund to take the game to the Spanish side. Edin Terzić's men began positively, as Marcel Sabitzer and Niclas Füllkrug tested Oblak. At the other end, Kobel denied Nahuel Molina on one of Atlético's few forays forward. Despite those early opportunities, Dortmund struggled to keep the pressure up and, despite Haller and Julian Brandt being introduced into the fray, clear-cut chances were initially few and far between. However, with the clock ticking, the Ivory Coast striker netted what could proved to be a vital goal, burying into the bottom corner after being found in space by his fellow substitute. Dortmund now had the bit between their teeth, and only the woodwork stopped Jamie Bynoe-Gittens' deflected attempt from distance sneaking past Oblak. The upright came to the home shot-stopper's rescue again deep into stoppage time as he was beaten by Brandt's header. Ultimately, Dortmund will now be confident of overturning the deficit on home turf in front of a partisan crowd.