Chelsea 1 Atletico Madrid 1 (agg: 3-1) Blues book Champions League last eight spot after Atletico miss penalty
CHELSEA sealed their Champions League quarter-final place after Atletico Madrid missed a THIRD penalty over the two-legged tie.
A Maren Mjelde spot-kick helped the Blues snatch a 1-1 draw and a 3-1 aggregate win - with England striker Toni Duggan smashing her penalty onto the crossbar.
But the Blues’ march to the competition’s next stage was overshadowed by a clash of heads that forced Beth England off in the first half.
And Blues boss Emma Hayes reckons her side may be feeling the effects of hard-fought victories against West Ham in the WSL and Atletico in Europe.
Hayes said: “I think my team were a bit leggy. I think the domestic league in England is so tough, so when you're playing West Ham away it takes something out of the players.
“Plus, we played with ten players last Wednesday and completed some physical stats that for some players were season-highs, so it was going to take its toll.
“I've been in this competition enough to tell you that PSG away, Bayern Munich away, Lyon away – in my time as manager – they've all been really challenging games.
“I think we saw a truer reflection of Atletico today, I thought they played a good game.
“I'm really pleased to come through this knowing that we weren't at our best.”
Atletico, beaten 2-0 in the first leg, went on the attack in the opening stages with Silvia Meseguer forcing Mjelde to charge down her sixth-minute strike.
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And the visitors hit back moments later with Pernille Harder rifling a shot wide of Hedvig Lindahl’s post.
The WSL champs seemed content to allow their LaLiga Women’s opponents to dominate possession.
And the Spanish club had a chance to take the lead shortly before the half-hour mark with Deyna Castellanos’ shot dipping over Chelsea’s bar.
Ann-Katrin Berger was forced to pull off a diving save with Toni Duggan unleashing a late first half shot destined for her bottom right corner.
The second period saw a couple of dramatic moments with Atletico yelling for - but failing to get - a spot-kick following Niamh Charles’ challenge on Ludmila.
And the Blues starlet later received a yellow card for a handball with referee Stephanie Frappert pointing to the spot in the 73rd minute.
But Atletico were unable to capitalise with Duggan’s strike bouncing off the bar and out of danger.
And moments later a pen for the Blues minutes saw Mjelde score her second goal of the round 16 encounter.
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It was a somewhat controversial moment with the ball appearing to have struck Sonia Garcia Majarin’s side but perceived to have been a handball by ref Frappert.
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A late goal for Emelyne Laurent saw Atletico grab a consolation.
Chelsea will find out who their next opponents will be in the Champions League quarter-final draw on Friday 12 March.