Atletico Madrid struck in the first half at home to English Premier League champions Leicester City. They head to England looking to qualify for their third semifinal in four seasons.Atletico Madrid 1-0 Leicester City
(Griezmann pen. 28′)
Antoine Griezmann earned and scored a penalty in the first half as Atletico Madrid beat Leicester City in the Vicente Calderon on Wednesday, but the one goal scoreline sets up an intriguing second leg..
Leicester’s Marc Albrighton clipped the France forward as he was making a long run down the left flank. Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson pointed to the spot with Leicester players protesting that the foul occurred outside the penalty area.
Griezmann coolly converted the penalty by sending goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel the wrong way with a firm shot into the left corner.
With the result, Atletico increased their unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games. They are now in a good position to qualify for their third Champions League semifinal in four seasons after appearing in two of the last three finals in the competition.
But Leicester City, the last English team remaining in the competition, have made a habit of shocking the football world in the last two seasons. They will fancy their chances of overturning the deficit when they host Atletico in the second leg next Tuesday.
dv/ (AP, Reuters)
