Arsenal’s Champions League adventure ended at the last-16 stage for a fifth successive season as their first-leg deficit proved too much to overturn in Monaco.
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Needing to score at least three goals at the Stade Louis II to progress, the travelling Gunners faithful were given hope as substitute Aaron Ramsey added to Olivier Giroud’s first-half strike.
The visitors had 11 minutes to find the decisive seventh goal of the tie, but were unable to force the ball over the line with Monaco goalkeeper Danijel Subisic denying Giroud with a brilliant save.
It meant that while Arsene Wenger could console himself with a first win over a former employer in his long and storied career, his abject recent record in the Champions League knockout round continued.
Arsenal are the team with the most “we were so close” moments in Champions League’s recent history
— migeru (@migerucb) March 17, 2015
Arsenal were by far the better team on the night, but ultimately paid the price for a woefully flat showing in north London three weeks ago.
Atletico Madrid progressed to the quarter-finals with a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Bayer Leverkusen after the tie finished 1-1 on aggregate following the hosts’ 1-0 win on the night.
Hakan Calhanoglu, Omer Toprak and Stefan Kiessling all missed for Bayer to send the Vicente Calderon into wild celebrations.
Atletico, trailing 1-0 from the first leg, had suffered an early blow when goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya injured himself diving at the feet of Heung-Min Son, forcing him to limp off for the introduction of Jan Oblak.
Fernando Torres penalty seals Atletico Madrid’s place in Champions League quarter-finals: http://t.co/G9dMaK8qcQ https://t.co/g7TKgGG272
— The42.ie Football (@football_ie) March 17, 2015
But after a series of set-pieces, the home team’s pressure told when Koke’s free-kick was cleared to the edge of the box, Cani’s header found Mario Suarez and his low drive deflected off Toprak and into the net.
The tie remained on a knife edge heading into the final 20 minutes, with Griezmann looking the most likely to make the breakthrough.
The hosts were intensifying their pressure and a free-kick from Koke fizzed inches wide before Turan forced a low save from Bernd Leno after a neat lay-off from Griezmann, but the winner wouldn’t come and extra time ensued.
