Atletico Madrid currently holds a record that makes me sad or happy: they are the team that has had the honor of playing in the most C1/Champions League finals without ever winning the championship. In the European club championship honor roll, there are 11 teams that have played in fewer finals than Atletico but have won the championship, and have even lifted the trophy multiple times.
Atletico Madrid struggle to find joy
The "bitter" thing about Atletico is that: in all 3 times they reached the final of the C1/Champions League, they never lost, and even led twice. Atletico took the lead but Bayern Munich equalized in the 120th minute, then lost in the rematch in 1974. Exactly 40 years later, Atletico took the lead again, but Real equalized in the 90+3 minute, then lost in extra time. In the 2016 final, Atletico lost to Real in the 11m penalty shootout.
In the Champions League final alone, Atletico have suffered two painful defeats against their city rivals. In the past, Atletico lost 1-2 away to Real but won 1-0 at home in the semi-finals of the 1958-59 C1 Cup. At that time, UEFA had not applied the "away goals" rule. Otherwise, Real would have been eliminated, and the record of 5 consecutive C1 Cup wins would not have existed. In the rematch, Real won 1-0, reached the final, and history became completely different. Atletico also lost to Real in the quarter-finals of the 2015 Champions League and the semi-finals of the 2017 Champions League. The only goal in the 88th minute of the second leg, scored by Javier Hernandez for Real, was the only goal to decide the winner in the two matches in 2015.
It's too painful for Atletico, not because they have met 5 times and lost to Real right on the threshold of glory (2 times in the final, 2 times in the semi-finals, 1 time in the quarter-finals - no other capital in Europe has ever had a derby in the final of the C1 Cup/Champions League twice, like Madrid). The pain is: Atletico always lost miserably, with a close score!
This time, Real won 2-1 at home, and that is certainly not a safe advantage. Will Atletico have enough strength to win again (at any score), to advance or at least go to extra time or penalties? In the last 7 home matches against Real, Atletico have only lost once. The names may be different (especially when comparing star names), but when they step on the field, Atletico always play on par in Madrid derbies.
In both of their encounters in La Liga this season, Atletico and Real drew. Also in La Liga this season, if Real lost 0-4 to Barcelona at home, Atletico would beat Barcelona away. This is to say that if Atletico had won a historic victory this time, eliminating Real Madrid, it would not have been a "shocking" result.
Also in tonight's Champions League match, English representatives Arsenal and Aston Villa will have a leisurely stroll at home, when they host PSV Eindhoven and Brugge. Winning 3-1 away, Aston Villa only needs to be relatively cautious against Brugge. As for Arsenal, tonight's match is certainly just a formality, because they won 7-1 in the first leg at Eindhoven. The remaining match is Lille - Borussia Dortmund, with all possible outcomes (the first leg ended in a 1-1 draw at Dortmund).
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/atletico-chong-lai-lich-su-185250311201419991.htm
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