Iran Press/Europe: Real Madrid defeated Atalanta 3-1 on Tuesday to advance 4-1 on aggregate after two consecutive eliminations in the last 16, with Karim Benzema leading the way to victory after a first-half blunder by Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Sportiello, who was among the changes made by coach Gian Piero Gasperini from the 1-0 first-leg loss in Italy.
“I don’t have regrets on my initial choices,” Gasperini said. “We can’t afford to make mistakes and gift goals, we wanted to do better. It’s a pity.”
Captain Sergio Ramos and Marco Asensio sealed Madrid’s victory by scoring a goal each in the second half. Atalanta’s goal came from a free-kick converted by Luis Muriel late in the game. “The goal was to advance and we came out playing with the ambition to try to win the match,” Ramos said. “We controlled the game and had chances to score even more.”
Sportiello tried to play from his area but misplayed his shot and the ball went directly to Luka Modric, who entered the box and made a low pass for an easy goal by Benzema from near the penalty spot in the 34th minute. Sportiello had replaced Pierluigi Gollini after the first leg and had been starting in Serie A since then.
It often pressed up front to try to force Madrid into mistakes but with no success as the host was able to stay in control during most of the match at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium. Madrid had reached the semifinals or better in eight straight seasons between 2010-11 and 2017-18 before losing to Ajax in the last 16 in 2019 and to Manchester City last season.
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