02/24/26 01:57:00
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02/24 13:55 CST Champions League playoffs: Atletico Madrid finally sees off
Club Brugge, Bodo/Glimt eyes upset
Champions League playoffs: Atletico Madrid finally sees off Club Brugge,
Bodo/Glimt eyes upset
MILAN (AP) --- A hat trick by Alexander Sorloth helped Atletico Madrid finally
shake off Club Brugge and advance to the Champions League round of 16.
The Spanish giant won 4-1 on Tuesday to complete a 7-4 aggregate victory. But
the wide margin on the night didn't tell the full story of Brugge's resilience
over two legs.
A 3-3 draw in Belgium last week had seen Brugge come back from two goals down
and then level again in the 89th minute.
In the second leg in Madrid it fought back once more after Sorloth fired
Atletico in front in the 23rd. Joel Ordonez leveled 13 minutes later.
Diego Simeone's team went 2-1 ahead through Johnny Cardoso early in the second
half and Brugge's resolve was finally broken.
Sorloth completed his hat trick with goals in the 76th and 87th to secure
Atletico's place in the next round.
Bodo/Glimt eyes another upset
Inter Milan must overturn a two-goal deficit against Bodo/Glimt if it is to
avoid becoming the latest giant to be cut down by the tiny Norwegian team.
Bodo/Glimt leads 3-1 after the first leg and has its sights on the round of 16.
Inter --- the beaten finalist in two of the last three seasons --- plays the
second leg at home but is in danger of suffering one of the biggest upsets in
the competition's history.
"We should have done better, and there's a lot of disappointment," Inter coach
Cristian Chivu said. "But we've reset and I'm now interested in our approach
and our confidence, being the best version of ourselves and knowing we can turn
it around."
Bodo/Glimt's victory last week in Norway saw it follow up back-to-back wins
against Manchester City and Atletico Madrid at the end of the league phase.
"We feel we can compete with most teams but at the same time we have nothing to
lose," Bodo/Glimt midfielder Patrick Berg said.
Newcastle was cruising into the next round after a 6-1 win in Qarabag, while
Bayer Leverkusen is in control against Olympiakos following a 2-0 win in the
first leg.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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