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’s Champions League adventure ends here.

Agonisingly, everything seemed to be going to plan. Barça needed impressively little time to cancel out Atlético Madrid’s two-goal advantage, and were playing the kind of football that suggested there were more goals to come.

the game as it happened

Even after Ademola Lookman got Atlético back on course, things were looking very promising indeed, but a third goal never materialised.

A difficult task was made harder still when Eric García was sent off after 79 minutes, and although Barça were winners on the night, it wasn’t enough to reverse the damage of the first leg, and it will instead be Atlético Madrid who face either Arsenal or Sporting Lisbon in the penultimate round.

Straight back into contention

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 Atlético looking nervous and making mistake after mistake, and Barça 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.

Just four minutes into the game, a Clément 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 Atlético keeper had no chance and would be picking the ball out of the back of the net.

He’d 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 Barça on the night, and all square on aggregate.

Atlético pull one back

That wasn’t the only chance of the first half, with Musso frequently called upon to make up for his defence’s mishaps, on one occasion catching Fermín López 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.

Atlético 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 Atlético.

They were no longer winning on aggregate, but the momentum was very much still with Barça. Atlético were chasing shadows as Barça pushed and pushed, and ten minutes into the second half the constant pressure looked to have finally been rewarded by a fine Fermín goal. Sadly, the VAR room had spotted an offside.

Eric García off

Despite trailing, Barça looked much more comfortable in the game, but as the clock ticked down, Atlético started to move their own football up a gear, with Joan Garcia producing a brilliant save to deny Nico González from point-blank range.

And then came the awful moment of déjà vu. Just as had happened to Pau Cubarsí in the first leg, a red card was produced for a last-man tackle. This time it was Eric Garcia on Alexander Sørloth, and Barça would be playing the remaining minutes one man down.

Atlético, 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, Atlético chasing a tie-clincher, Barça trying to find a goal to take the game into extra time.

There were chances for both to happen. None was closer than Ronald Araujo’s header with just a minute to go. That one sailed over the bar. And with it went Barça’s last chance of a place in the Champions League semi-final.

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