Atletico Madrid defeat Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 on penalties (1-1 agg) - Player Ratings

Atletico Madrid players celebrate their penalty shootout win over Bayer Leverkusen

Atletico Madrid qualified to the last eight of the Champions League in a thrilling penalty shoot-out after the match finished 1-0 in favour of the home team in regulation time.

Atletico, as expected started the game on the offensive and they took the lead through Mario Suarez, courtesy of a slight deflection off Omer Toprak. But with both teams unable to add more to it, the match finished 1-0 (1-1 on aggregate) after extra-time.

Of the ten penalties taken in the shoot-out, only five were converted. After Kießling missed the decisive penalty in the shoot-out, last season’s finalists qualified with a scoreline of 3-2 in the shootout to move to the quarterfinals. Let us look at how the players performed on the night:

Atletico Madrid

Miguel Angel Moya - 5/10

He hardly had anything to do before he was substituted due to a possible hamstring injury early on in the game.

Juanfran - 6/10

Defensively, he looked settled and he went forward on every possible occasion to support his attackers, but his delivery wasn’t very good.

Joao Miranda - 7/10

With Godin suspended, all the responsibility was on Miranda. The Brazilian was up to the challenge as he stood tall at the back. Except for a few wayward clearances, he looked assured in defence.

Jose Maria Gimenez - 6.5/10

The youngster was asked to fill in the boots of their inspirational defender Godin on the night. He struggled initially, with a lot of his tackles being mistimed. However, he grew into the game as it progressed and formed a good partnership with Miranda.

Jesus Gamez - 6/10

The right-back was asked to fill in on the opposite flank after Siqueira was injured in the first leg. Even though he looked decent in defence, Gamez’s passing left his team in trouble on more than one occasion.

Mario Suarez - 7.5/10

He scored the deflected opener to get Atletico Madrid back into the match. Also, he sat in front of his defenders and offered good protection for them, venturing forward at every possible opportunity. He also converted a penalty in the shootout.

Koke - 7/10

He gave the ball away early on with some wayward passing but was much more assured as the match went on. Koke also helped his defend against any threats. His penalty, however, was saved brilliantly by Leno.

Cani - 5/10

He hardly got involved in the match during the first period and was rightly replaced at the break.

Arda Turan - 7/10

His work rate on the night was second to none. Turan never stopped running and offered great support in attack.

Antoine Griezmann - 6.5/10

His touches and turns in the first half were at times brilliant. However, he did not make the most of those situations and didn’t threaten Leverkusen defence. The Frenchman offered more threat in the second half from the left flank. He also converted his spot-kick in the shootout.

Mario Mandzukic - 6.5/10

Mandzukic did well to hold the ball up and bring others in to the game. Also, he cleared many balls while defending in their own box during corners. However, he failed to make any notable contribution in the attacking third.

Substitutes

Jan Oblak (23') - 6/10

After coming on as an early substitute, he hardly had much to do as Leverkusen barely tested him. He however, did well when called upon and made a great save in the shootout.

Raul Garcia (45') - 6/10

He came on for the ineffective Cani and looked better than him without coming up with a noteworthy moment. If not for a fine save from Leno, Garcia could have sealed the game in extra-time. The Spaniard also missed the opening penalty in the shoot-out as he skyed it into the crowd.

Fernando Torres (83') - 6/10

He offered great energy level to his team after coming on late in the second half. Torres never stopped running and always made it tough for the Leverkusen defence. He won the match for his team, as he calmly converted his team’s final penalty before Leverkusen missed their spot-kick.

Disappointed Bayer Leverkusen players at the end of the penalty shootout against Atletico

Bayer Leverkusen

Bernd Leno - 7/10

He looked solid in between the posts. Leno did well to deal with the shots and crosses aimed at him. He however couldn't do much about the goal. He also brilliantly saved Koke's penalty in the shootout.

Roberto Hilbert - 6/10

Hilbert was solid in defence and made a great interception in the second half to deny Atletico the chance to score. However, he couldn't go forward as much as he did in the first leg.

Omer Toprak - 4/10 (Flop of the match)

It was from his deflection that Atletico got the opener. He otherwise did okay in defence. He added to his not-so-great night by handing the advantage to Atletico when he missed his penalty kick.

Emir Spahic - 7/10

Spahic partnered Toprak and was solid at the back. His interceptions were good, and he cleared and and blocked shots well.

Wendell Nascimento Borges - 6.5/10

Just like his full-back partner, he defended well, but couldn't go forward often due to Atletico's high pressing. Borges made a crucial tackle in the first half to deny Mandzukic an attempt at scoring.

Gonzalo Castro - 6/10

He offered good support to his defenders by sitting in front of them. His passing was tidy but not eye catching and Castro converted his penalty-kick really well.

Lars Bender - 7/10

He formed good partnership with his midfield partner and helped his defenders well by clearing many crosses from corners and set pieces. However, he offered little in attack but helped them work well when they had possession.

Karim Bellarabi - 6/10

He looked lively from the start and his early shot caused a few nerves among the home team. But that's as good as he came in the match to scoring.

Hakan Calhanoglu - 6/10

He did not play at the same level he did in the first leg. With Leverkusen defending for most of the game, he helped his teammates well by tracking back regularly. He could not take advantage of Garcia missing his penalty as he himself missed his first-kick from the shoot-out.

Son Heung-Min - 6/10

He looked lively in the opening exchanges and could have been one-on-one in the first half, however his first touch let him down. He defended ably to help his team hold on.

Josip Drmic - 5/10

Due to Atletico Madrid's domination, he was left alone in attack. He didn’t get many chances to prove his ability.

Substitutes

Stefan Kießling (69') - 5/10

He hardly got many openings to threaten Atletico's goal and missed the decisive last penalty which allowed Atletico progress to the next round.

Simon Rolfes (77') - 6/10

Rolfes almost scored late on in extra-time with a stunning strike and continued his decent performance by converting his kick in the shootout.

Kyriakos Papadopoulos (104') - 5/10

The big Greek defender came on in extra-time to steady the defence and he managed to do that.