Atletico Madrid vs Liverpool

This game was about to be an exciting one. It was a beautiful atmosphere in the Metropolitano stadium. You can hear the Liverpool fans chant their songs around the stadium. Liverpool were favorites coming into the game. Their type of football is great enough that they could expose Madrid like they did Barcelona in the previous Champions League semifinal. Madrid set their team a 4-4-2 which means their game plan is going to defend deep and possibly counter attack. Liverpool set up a 4-3-3 which is their usual lineup and their game plan always is press and attack quickly.

Madrid have the ball for a little while and Liverpool immediately start their high press but Madrid play through the pressure. Already 3 minutes in and Atletico crosses a dangerous ball Into Liverpool’s box but the ball goes over Morata’s head. Close call for Liverpool. The next minute Madrid crosses the ball from the corner. The ball falls and hits Fabinho’s foot. There is a scramble for the ball in the box and Saul puts the ball into the net in the 4th minute of the game. Madrid is now up 1-0 at the start of the game. This is the first goal in 379 minutes since Liverpool conceded a goal. Liverpool must respond.

It was a confident start by Madrid. They played through the press and it paid off. Now they have something to defend for the rest of the game. They surprised Liverpool by the intensity Madrid are playing. The home fans now start to sing. You can hear it ring around the stadium. Now since the goal, Madrid start to defend tighter and deeper. Trent Alexander Arnold is not having a good game. He tried to cross the ball a couple times but he sent the ball wide and high out of bounds. A good sign is that Liverpool is starting to find themselves in the game by winning back possession which is what they do well.

Liverpool may be playing better but Madrid are still dangerous in the counter attacks. It’s about 15 minutes in and the game still isn’t settled, Liverpool look scrambled because of the sub-par attacking and defending. Thomas Partey lob passes a ball toward Koke but Van Djik incorrectly heads the ball forward to Morata. Morata almost puts it away but Allison from Liverpool saves the goal and Liverpool start their counter in the 26th minute. In the same minute Atletico get the ball back and passes it backward to Oblak. He clears the ball but accidentally passes it to Salah. Salah gives a heavy touch to the ball and it goes to Firmino and he passes it back to Salah. Salah puts the ball in the back of the net and equalizes the game.

Unfortunately the goal is taken off because Firmino was offside when he received the ball from Salah. The score is still 1-0. As the game goes on, it is clear that Liverpool look vulnerable. They try a few shots on goal from outside the box but that is the only chances they have at goal. From here the two teams look evenly matched. In the 35th minute Salah receives a cross and heads it well toward goal but is cleared by the defense. Towards the end of the half, Liverpool look like they can score but cannot penetrate the defense. It’s halftime and Liverpool still have not scored. Atletico are going into halftime with confidence. They kept their lines compact and defended well.

Halftime is over and both teams make substitutions. Marcos LLorente is subbed on for Thomas Lemar from Madrid. Sadio Mane from Liverpool is subbed off and Divock Origi is brought on. Madrid start the second half aggressively like they did at the start of the game. Liverpool still look disorganized and can’t find the final pass they need to score. But as the 2nd half rolls Liverpool start to crack the Madrid defense a little. But Origi is not making the right amount of impact in the attack as Mane would but Mane was subbed because of the earlier yellow card. The level of attacking intensity is dropped with Origi on.

The game continues the same and Liverpool still cannot score. It looks as though Liverpool will take home a loss for the 1st Leg. In the 72nd minute, Salah is taken off and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain is on. The level of attacking is dropped lower and Liverpool would not be scoring soon. The game ends and the score is 1-0. It was a frustrating night for Liverpool that they were not at their best and could not score while also conceding a goal as well. Madrid pretty much had a perfect game. They defended well the whole game and are a goal up in the aggregate.

They will face each other again on March 11th for the second leg of Champions League. Liverpool need to have an improved performance at home if they want to advance since they are the current champions. Madrid can knock them out the competition if they give the same performance in the 2nd game. Liverpool are still favorites and still have a chance to win the round of 16. The 2nd game will definitely be a match to watch.