Godsent Ogbebor
Atletico Hand Inter First Champions League Defeat With Late Winner
Atletico Madrid ended Inter Milan’s perfect run in the Champions League on Wednesday night, snatching a dramatic 2-1 victory after a stoppage-time header from captain Jose Maria Gimenez at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.
Inter, who had won all four of their previous group matches, were stunned when Gimenez rose in the 93rd minute to guide in Antoine Griezmann’s corner, denying the Italians a point after they fought back earlier in the game.
Atletico had taken the lead as early as the ninth minute when Julian Alvarez reacted quickly to a loose ball in the box, scoring after Carlos Augusto’s attempted clearance struck Alex Baena and dropped kindly for him. The goal stood after VAR overturned the referee’s initial decision to rule it out for handball.
Inter pushed for a response and created several chances through Federico Dimarco, who went close twice before half-time. Their pressure continued after the break, with Nicolo Barella hitting the crossbar before Atletico goalkeeper Juan Musso denied Dimarco again.
Read also: Japan Blow: Barcelona Cancels Match Over ‘Serious Breach’
The visitors finally levelled in the 54th minute when Ange-Yoan Bonny threaded a pass to Piotr Zielinski, who calmly placed his shot beyond Musso to bring Inter back into the game.
Both sides went in search of a winner, with Yann Sommer blocking Griezmann’s near-post effort and tipping away a long-range strike from Marc Pubill. But Atletico had the final say as Gimenez powered in the match-deciding header deep into added time.
The result saw Inter drop to fourth place in the group, though tied on 12 points with Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Atletico climbed to 12th position with nine points.
Atletico will next host Real Oviedo in La Liga on Saturday, before travelling to Monaco for their next Champions League fixture on 9 December. Inter continue their campaign in Serie A with a visit to Pisa on Sunday, ahead of a Champions League meeting with Liverpool at San Siro on 9 December.
