Real Madrid into Champions League final after second leg loss to Atletico

Atletico won the second leg of the semi-final 2-1, but lost 2-4 on aggregate.

Goals: Niguez 12', Griezmann 16' penalty - Isco 42'

Atletico almost made a comeback at the Vicente Calderon. The red and white striped team needed only 16 minutes to take a 2-0 lead, thanks to a header from Saul Niguez and a penalty from Antoine Griezmann.

If it weren't for Isco's rebound to reduce the score to 1-2 in the 42nd minute, Real could have had more difficulties.Having to score three more goals to secure the overall victory, Atletico lost their will and precision in their attacks. Having successfully maintained their lead, Real secured their ticket to Cardiff with a 4-2 aggregate victory.

Isco's goal helped Real stop Atletico's comeback attempt. Photo: Reuters

Compared to the first leg loss 0-3 at Bernabeu, Atletico started the second leg with a completely different spirit. The continuous attacking efforts from the home team put Real, despite their mental preparation, under great pressure.

Along with the decisive attacks, Atletico also had high accuracy. In the 12th minute, thousands of home fans exploded when Saul Niguez headed the opening score from a corner kick. Not stopping there, four minutes later, Atletico doubled their hope with a central attack that forced Varane to foul Torres in the penalty area. From the 11m mark, Griezmann increased the score to 2-0 although the shot hit goalkeeper Keylor Navas' hand.

Saul Niguez headed the opening goal for Atletico.

Griezmann doubled the lead just four minutes after the first goal.

Real had to wait until Atletico's lightning start to regain their balance. Thanks to the efforts of the midfield trio of Modric, Kroos and Casemiro to distribute the ball, the visitors gradually gained control of the midfield. Real's defense also gradually played more solidly compared to the first minutes.

In addition to shaking up the squad, Real also found a turning point for the match. Isco, who replaced Gareth Bale, became the hero for the visitors when he fired a close-range shot to reduce the score to 1-2 after goalkeeper Jan Oblak blocked Ronaldo's powerful shot. Before that, Karim Benzema had dribbled past three Atletico players to pass into the penalty area for Ronaldo to score.

When Real scored at the Vicente Calderon, Atletico needed to increase the score to at least 5-1 to qualify for the final. As if understanding that the task of scoring three more goals was too much, the home team could no longer launch strong attacks like at first.Meanwhile, Real played somewhat dominantly after the break.

Isco proved worthy of replacing Bale in his absence.

If the ball had not gone just wide of the goal, Ronaldo could have scored a goal with a tap-in midway through the second half. Benzema also nearly equalized for Real when he flew to head the ball just wide of the post.

Atletico also had a great chance in the 66th minute but failed to capitalize. Goalkeeper Navas made an excellent save for Real by blocking Gameiro's curling shot and then jumped up to block Niguez's follow-up header.

With a successful 4-2 aggregate scoreline, Real Madrid have qualified for the Champions League final for the third time in four years. On June 3, at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff (Wales), the white team will defend their title against Juventus.

According to VNE