MADRID (AP) — It took a wild finish and a goal by Antoine Griezmann 11 minutes into stoppage time to end Atlético Madrid’s home struggles in the Champions League.
Griezmann found the net with a header off a corner kick in the last play of the match to give Atlético a 2-1 win over Porto at the Metropolitano stadium on Wednesday, with all three goals of the Group B game scored after 90 minutes.
It was only the second Champions League match to see three goals scored in the 90th minute or later excluding extra time. The other match involved the same two teams in December last year — a 3-1 win for Atlético at Porto.
“This is soccer, it’s always changing,” Atlético coach Diego Simeone said. “We didn’t play a great match and it looked like it was going to be a draw, but in the end we picked up three very important points.”
Simeone was also celebrating his son’s successful debut in the Champions League in Naples. Giovanni Simeone scored off the bench in Napoli’s 4-1 win over Liverpool in Group A.
In the other Group B game, Club Brugge edged Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 at home.
It was Atlético’s first win in nine Champions League matches at home. Simeone’s team hadn’t won at the Metropolitano in the European competition since 2020.
Mario Hermoso gave Atlético the lead two minutes into stoppage time, but the hosts thought they were heading to another disappointing result when Porto equalized four minutes later with Matheus Uribe converting a penalty kick after a handball by Hermoso inside the area.
Griezmann, again a substitute, got the winner from close range after an assist by Axel Witsel with a header off a corner.
Both Hermoso and Griezmann had been jeered by Atlético supporters after a recent loss, and Hermoso confronted some of the fans in the stands.
“In the end, we all want the same, which is to defend the shield of this club,” Hermoso said. “We have always been united.”
Atlético didn’t win a single European home game last season, with its last victory coming against Salzburg in the group stage of the previous season.
Another setback would have added pressure on coach Simeone as Atlético had won only two of its first two Spanish league games.
Until stoppage time, the closest Atlético had gotten to scoring on Wednesday was a second-half goal by Koke Resurrección which was disallowed for offside. João Félix and Álvaro Morata started up front but struggled again. Porto had a few chances but couldn’t capitalize on them.
Porto had Iranian forward Mehdi Taremi sent off in the 81st minute.
Goalkeeper Jan Oblak started for Atlético after being listed as doubtful because of an injury picked up in the team’s Spanish league game last weekend.
Atlético has advanced past the group stage eight times in the nine seasons it played in the Champions League since Simeone took over in 2012. It was eliminated at this stage only in 2017-18, when it went on to win the Europa League.
Porto was eliminated in the group stage last season. It hasn’t failed to advance to the knockout round in consecutive seasons since 1997-98 and 1998-99.
It was the ninth meeting between the clubs in the Champions League, including two from last season in the group stage, when the Spanish team won 3-1 in Portugal and drew 0-0 at home. Porto won only two games against Atlético, with three draws and four defeats.
Porto had won five of its first six matches this season, with Taremi scoring five goals.
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