Ronaldo's hat-trick sends Juventus into Champions League quarter-finals

*Goals: Ronaldo 27', 48', 86' (penalty).

After being silent in the first leg, Cristiano Ronaldo showed his worth in the Champions League - a competition where he has been the top scorer for the last six seasons. Two powerful headers and a successful penalty late on from the Portuguese striker secured a ticket to the next round for Juventus in a match where they dominated but needed the brilliance of their biggest star to defeat Atletico's defence.

Ready for a comeback, Juventus attacked from the very beginning. In the fourth minute, Giorgio Chiellini scored a goal against Atletico but it was disallowed because the referee thought Ronaldo had fouled goalkeeper Jan Oblak in the previous tackle. Juventus had some pretty rhythmic attacks on the wings. They hoped that two aerial players, Ronaldo and Mario Mandzukic, would create a breakthrough.

Atletico played defensively on the counter-attack, with Alvaro Morata up front. But the Spanish striker was closely monitored on his return to the Allianz Stadium by Juventus's tricky defenders. Antoine Griezmann spread wide and made his mark with a long-range shot that forced Wojciech Szczesny to make a difficult save.

Atletico's defenders were focused in a high-stakes game and to overcome them, Juventus needed a surprise attack. That came when Federico Bernardeschi and Ronaldo switched wings. Bernardeschi, the link between Juventus's attack and the full-backs, delivered a precise cross for Ronaldo to head in powerfully. Juanfran, who replaced Filipe Luis at left-back, was beaten in the air.

Excited by the opening goal, Juventus continued to threaten in the second half. Bernardeschi's free kick went wide and then a few minutes later, he missed a header. Ronaldo continued to threaten Atletico with an inaccurate header. Chiellini then headed hard but Oblak made an excellent save. Atletico responded with Morata's header going over the bar in first-half stoppage time.

After Joao Cancelo's high ball, Ronaldo, despite being sandwiched between Atletico's central defenders Jose Gimenez and Godin, headed the ball hard and dangerously, bringing Juventus' second goal early in the second half. Oblak flew to push the ball out but goal-line technology helped the referee determine that the ball had crossed the line.

Juventus controlled the game and won the ball back well in midfield thanks to an energetic midfield coordinated by Miralem Pjanic. At the back, despite being a former teammate, Chiellini used tricks to keep Morata from playing comfortably. Unable to keep his cool, the Spanish striker retaliated and Chiellini just waited for that moment to fall to the ground, ending an attack by Atletico.

After a free kick from Pjanic, Mandzukic's shot went wide of the post from close range. The Croatian striker played quietly in this match and had to make way for Moise Keane late in the match. Upon entering the field, Keane faced Oblak after a long pass from his teammate but shot wide. However, not long after this move, Juventus found the decisive goal.

Bernardeschi used his speed to get past Angel Correa on the left wing. After running for more than 20m without being able to stop his opponent, Correa pushed Bernardeschi from behind. The Atletico player probably knew he had made a big mistake when he saw the referee pointing to the penalty spot. On the 11m mark, Ronaldo fooled Oblak, scoring the goal that decided the match between two of Europe's top teams.

It was Ronaldo's eighth hat-trick in the Champions League - a record he shares with Lionel Messi. He has been involved in 77 goals (63 goals, 14 assists) in 77 Champions League knockout games. After scoring his third, Ronaldo recreated Diego Simeone's infamous celebration in the first leg. With 25 goals in 33 games against Atletico, Ronaldo is undoubtedly one of Simeone's most hated opponents.