The ball brushed off of Cristiano Ronaldo and hit the back of the net… the Juventus net. His return to Madrid ended in a 2-0 defeat that goes a long way to end his dream of winning a sixth Champions League back in the Spanish capital next May.

Twice Atletico Madrid believed they had possibly edged ahead of Juventus but twice their supporters were silenced by VAR. They kept going and when Jose Gimenez scuffed the loose ball over the line on 78 minutes there were flailing arms and falling bodies everywhere but no one had broken any rules and for all Juventus’ complaints the goal stood.

Anything one Uruguayan centre-back could do, the other one – Diego Godin – could do just as well and his Ronaldo assisted second leaves Juventus with a mountain to climb in next month’s second leg. Jan Oblak saved brilliantly at the end from Federico Bernardeschi and Ronaldo headed agonisingly wide but it finished 2-0.

Jose Gimenez (centre) proved one of Atletico Madrid’s heroes during a closely-fought last 16 first-leg clash with Juventus

The Uruguayan centre back (centre) slotted home from close range to give Atletico the lead on 78 minutes

Gimenez wheels away in celebration after giving the Spanish side the lead during the Champions League tie on Wednesday

The 24-year-old was mobbed by his team-mates after breaking the deadlock at the Wanda Metropolitano

Atletico Madrid captain Diego Godin doubled their lead five minutes later in the Spanish capital

The veteran Uruguayan scored from an acute angle, via a deflection off Cristiano Ronaldo, to give Atletico a 2-0 lead

The significance of that strike was evident for Godin and the home supporters – with the former jumping for joy

The night had started so promisingly for Ronaldo who almost scored after just eight minutes. He was fouled by Gimenez 30 metres out. As referee Felix Zwayer ordered, and re-ordered, the wall back Diego Costa appeared to creep forward and then jump back.

The referee booked him ruling him out of next month’s return leg. It was like Al Capone being done for tax evasion – of all the skulduggery he might have had planned for the evening and he was in the book and suspended for not being 10-yards back from a free-kick.

Ronaldo’s subsequent thunderous free-kick was creeping under Oblak’s bar but the Atletico keeper pushed it over. Not for nothing did Diego Simeone make keeping Oblak one of the conditions of his contract renewal last week.

Ronaldo – greeted by a an inflatable doll with one of his old No 7 Real Madrid shirts on it behind the goal – was in the mood to remind the Spanish capital what it was missing.

Thomas Partey’s shot then tested Wojciech Szczesny. Thomas was everywhere and he combined with Koke to sweep Atletico forward from midfield. When the ball reached Mattia De Sciglio he placed a hand on the shoulder of Costa and there was a tangle of ankles with Costa going to ground and making sure he was in the area when he hit the deck.

Referee Zwayer pointed to the spot but VAR corrected the decision. The foul had been outside the area. From the free-kick Antoine Griezmann went for goal but Szczesny saved at his near post when the Frenchman surprised everyone by going for goal.

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone (left) greets his Juventus counterpart Massimiliano Allegri before kick-off

Tensions were raised in the opening minutes when Blaise Matuidi (centre) caught Antoine Griezmann in the penalty area

Cristiano Ronaldo (right) was greeted by mass jeers from the Atletico supporters – due to his spell at bitter rivals Real Madrid

Atletico’s pantomime villain came close to breaking the deadlock with this blistering free-kick early on

However, Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak did well to tip Ronaldo’s 30-yard free-kick over the crossbar

Before the free-kick was taken, Diego Costa was booked for encroachment in the wall – meaning he will miss the second leg

Costa was in the thick of the action and midway through the first half thought he had won his side a penalty after being fouled

After initially awarding the spot-kick, German referee Felix Zwayer was told to review the decision by his VAR officials

After inspection on the decision, Zwayer overturned his initial decision and awarded a free-kick on the edge of the Juve box

Costa, crocked for 75 days straight until his reappearance at the weekend, and Ronaldo 34, two weeks ago, were playing like teenagers and the tempo of the game showed no signs of letting up.

Thomas was pouncing on Miralem Pjanic at every opportunity. It was Rodrigo’s job to pick up Pablo Dybala when he came to play between the lines. He didn’t do his job but again Oblak saved.

Simeone, meanwhile, continued to man-mark the fourth official cursing every time a Juventus foul was not punished with a caution and cursing when Thomas hacked down Dybala and picked up a yellow that will also rule him out of the second leg.

At the end of the half Ronaldo tried to get away down the left but first Saul and then Juanfran stamped on his ankle. Saul only just caught him but Juanfran made full contact.

The Metropolitano Stadium teased Ronaldo with ‘pay your taxes’ chants. He responded by showing five fingers – one for every Champions League he has won, two against Atletico.

Griezmann endured a quiet first half, by his standards as both sides frustrated one another

Like Griezmann for Atletico, Juventus star Paulo Dybala failed to wriggle free from the hosts’ tight-knit side

Ronaldo was on the receiving end of some strong challenges from Atletico – who gave him a ‘welcomed return’ to Madrid

Like Costa, Thomas Partay will miss the second leg after being booked before half-time for a poor challenge on Dybala

Just after half-time Atletico had a golden chance to take the lead but Costa inexplicably fired when through one-on-one

Having beaten Leonardo Bonucci in a foot race, the Spain international somehow fired well wide of the goal

The 30-year-old shows his disbelief after missing the clearest chance of the match at that point in the Spanish capital

Atletico’s frustrations grew just moments later when Griezmann saw his lobbed effort hit the crossbar

The France forward was brilliantly denied by Wojciech Szczesny’s (right) fingertips – much to the delight of the visitors

Costa reemerged for the second half. How long would he last in his first full game back for three months? He almost scored five minutes in running on to Griezmann’s superb pass and giving the chasing Giorgio Chiellini a push out of the way. He then pulled his shot wide and was still ruing the miss when Simone took him off and threw on Alvaro Morata.

Before that Griezmann was at the heart of the next near-thing. His lob under pressure from Chiellini was pushed on to his bar by Szczesny. Atletico seemed closer than ever to taking the lead. When it looked as if they had VAR ruined the moment for the home support again.

Filipe Luis crossed from the left and Morata’s bullet header left Szczesny with no chance.

The on loan Chelsea’s striker’s celebration seemed oddly subdued. He did run to the Atletico supporters behind the goal but before he was back on the pitch referee Zwayer had put his finger to his ear and was being told to review the goal. When he did he spotted Morata’s hand into the back of Chiellini and ruled out the goal.

That’s the trouble with VAR, it sees almost everything and it isn’t swayed by the wall of noise from a passionate home support. But when there is nothing to see it has nothing to say. Gimenez’ goal stood and when Godin’s shot from another ball launched into the area hit Ronaldo and continued into the net Atletico could this time celebrate without waiting for a VAR decision – they are 90 minutes from the quarter-finals.

Costa was replaced by Alvaro Morata and the Spaniard thought he had given them the lead shortly after his introduction

The 26-year-old thundered home a cross from Filipe Luis into the top corner of the Juventus goal

However, Zwayer reviewed the incident after the striker was flagged for an alleged foul on Giorgio Chiellini

After reviewing the incident, the German referee did decide that Morata had pushed Chiellini (right) en route to scoring

Morata’s reaction to the decision was evident as he sought to end his malaise in front of goal

Chiellini speaks with his former Juventus team-mate about the incident – with both having two clear different opinions

Richard Kilty given shock place in European Indoor Championships by organisers despite failing to meet British Athletics’ qualifying standard

• Richard Kilty had resigned himself to missing out on chance to defend 60m title 
• He fell short of the excessively harsh national team qualifying mark of 6.60sec
• European Athletics Council bypassed British Athletics and invited him to race
• Before the intervention, Britain faced situation of taking only Ojie Edoburun 

By

Riath Al-Samarrai for the Daily Mail

Published:
07:57 EST, 20 February 2019

|
Updated:
17:36 EST, 20 February 2019

Richard Kilty has been handed a shock place in next month’s European Indoor Championships by the organisers despite failing to meet British Athletics’ controversial qualifying standard.

The two-time champion had resigned himself to missing out on a chance to defend his 60 metres title in Glasgow after falling short of the excessively harsh national team qualifying mark.

However, in a highly unusual move, the European Athletics Council bypassed British Athletics on Wednesday and invited the 29-year-old to compete.

Richard Kilty has been handed a shock place in European Indoor Championships by organisers

It is a stunning reprieve for the 2014 world indoor champion, whose best time in the qualifying period of 6.63 seconds was well inside the European Championship criteria of 6.78s but outside the British Athletics standard of 6.60s.

Performance director Neil Black defended the qualifying method against accusations of farce when he named only one sprinter for three possible slots in his team on Sunday, but British Athletics has now confirmed Kilty will run in their colours in Glasgow on March 2.

Kilty, whose 2018 season was hampered by achilles problems, said: ‘I am really thankful to European Athletics for giving me the opportunity to stand on the start line and realise the dream I set after I had my surgery. The main thing for me has been to get on that start line as a defending champion at a home championships.

‘I struggled mentally for a couple of days after the team announcement but now I feel phenomenal and I can put it to the back of my mind and run for my family, my fans and the home crowd – that is all I am thinking about.

‘I want to please the fans and the home crowd that want to see me run in Glasgow and I want to make my family proud. Once again I am so thankful for the opportunity from European Athletics and I can’t wait to stand on the start line and try and win a third title in a row.’

Performance director Neil Black defended the qualifying method when he named one sprinter 

European Athletics president Svein Arne Hansen said: ‘This situation of a defending champion from the host nation being fit but not making his or her national team is fairly unusual. Our invitation is really a special case. It helps the individual athlete, of course, but more importantly it shows that we are ready to react to opportunities that will help our events succeed.

‘We all know that it adds interest for the public when they see that national stars, especially champions, will be competing.’

Unlike the European outdoor championships, there is no automatic qualification for defending champions in the indoor equivalent. However, in the wake of this saga, European Athletics confirmed they will discuss a change to the rules.

Before the intervention of European Athletics, Britain faced the embarrassing situation of taking only Ojie Edoburun to contest the 60m. Black indicated on Sunday there would be no change to their qualification rules, which set the qualifying mark at 6.60s and mandated that athletes attended the British Indoor Championships.

While that latter requirement is sensible, the qualifying time has been questioned within the sport, given it is out of kilter with other events. For instance, 6.60s would ordinarily put a sprinter in line for a medal, while the women’s qualifying standard of 7.25s would not even have made the final.

Before European Athletics intervention, Britain faced situation of taking only Ojie Edoburun (R)

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Manchester City and Atletico Madrid took big steps towards the Champions League quarter finals on a thrilling and controversial night of football. 

City won 3-2 at Schalke, despite going behind to two penalties and having Nicolas Otamendi sent off, while Atletico beat Juventus 2-0 after having a goal and a penalty chalked off by VAR. 

Away from the main action, there were several talking points which may have slipped under your radar. Don’t fear, Sportsmail is here to catch you up on the things you missed… 

Scroll down for videos. 

Ronaldo dedicates his boots to his child…

Cristiano Ronaldo wore special embroidered boots for Juventus’ clash with Atletico at the Wanda Metropolitano. 

Along with his ‘CR7’ nickname, Ronaldo had the name of his fourth and youngest child, Alana Martina, written down the outside. 

Alana was born to Ronaldo and his girlfriend, Georgina Rodriguez, on November 12, 2017, and is younger sister to Cristiano junior and twins Mateo and Eva.

Cristiano Ronaldo wore special embroidered boots for Juventus’ clash with Atletico

…but another youngster wants his attention 

Being a mascot for a Champions League match is a fantastic experience for any young football fan. Being paired with one of the greatest players ever makes that dream even better.

Television cameras captured the young boy paired with Cristiano Ronaldo looking up at the star in nothing short of enthralment.

He clung to the Portuguese forward’s arm as if afraid he might vanish – enough to make Ronaldo glance down in what appeared to be mild bemusement. 

Cristiano Ronaldo’s mascot seemed unable to believe his luck at being paired with the star

The youngster gazed up in wonder at Ronaldo as he clung hard to the player’s forearm

Ronaldo glanced down at his adoring fan with what appeared to be mild bemusement

Schalke’s literal tunnel

At Manchester City, they have the Tunnel Club, where well-off supporters can pay a premium to watch the players through glass as they munch on prawn sandwiches. 

City’s opponents on Wednesday, Schalke, have gone for a very different approach, with the walls designed to look like an actual tunnel through rock.

This is in honour of the North Rhine-Westphalia area in which the club is situated, which has numerous coalmines. Schalke themselves are nicknamed Die Knappen (The Miners).

The tunnel at Schalke’s stadium is designed to look like an actual tunnel in a coal mine

Spain boss in the stands

Luis Enrique, manager of the Spanish national team, was in the stands of the Wanda Metropolitano.

The former Barcelona coach will be planning his squad for the European Championship qualifiers, which begin next month.

Spain start their attempts to reach the 2020 finals with a game against Norway at Valencia’s Mestalla.

Luis Enrique, manager of Spain, was in the stands of the Wanda Metropolitano on Wednesday

Courtois canned by Atletico fans

Thibaut Courtois made his name in three seasons with Atletico Madrid, helping them win La Liga, the Europa League and reach the Champions League final. Such was his contribution, the Belgian stopper has a plaque dedicated to him outside the Wanda Metropolitano, alongside other notable former players.

Those fond memories, however, have been extinguished by Courtois joining city rivals Real last summer – and the fans are not impressed.

They demonstrated their displeasure by covering his plaque in beer glasses, bottles and cans, with only Courtois’ name, very pointedly, left visible. 

Thibaut Courtois’ plaque outside the Wanda Metropolitano has been trashed by Atletico fans

Diego Costa being Diego Costa

Fans of gamesmanship and rough-housing will be glad to hear that Diego Costa remains as prime a purveyor of the dark arts at Atletico Madrid as he was at Chelsea. 

Within 30 seconds he was in the referee’s face to complain about a decision. After eight minutes he had already picked up a booking that rules him out of the second leg.

Costa was also at the centre of the main first half controversy when he was tripped by Mattia De Sciglio outside the area however the referee awarded a penalty – only to rescind it via VAR.

Some fans on Twitter expressed their admiration for Costa’s unashamed villainy – while others gloated after he missed a one-on-one sitter early in the second half. 

Diego Costa was ruled out of the second leg after being booked after just eight minutes

Now that’s what I call a lager top 

The winners of the Champions League will not be decided until May – but really, on Wednesday night, the true champion was crowned. 

A Schalke fan was captured on television balancing a near-full pint perfectly on his head as he walked through the stands, to the delight of fellow supporters. 

Maybe he made use of some surreptitious glue or blu-tac, but we like to think that this fan was the most level headed man in Gelsenkirchen on Wednesday, 

A Schalke fan was captured on television balancing a near-full pint perfectly on his head

The drink was steady he walked through the stands, to the delight of fellow supporters

One impressed fan even asked for a picture of the level headed supporter in Gelsenkirchen

Ballsy celebration from Simeone

Atletico manager Diego Simeone is a man’s man, as tough on the touchline as he was on the pitch with testosterone coursing through his veins.

That testosterone was very much on show as he celebrated Atletico’s first goal, scored by centre back Jose Gimenez. 

Simeone turned to the crowd, grabbed his crotch, thrusted and roared in delight. Because of course he did.

Atletico manager Diego Simeone celebrated the opening goal in enthusiastic style

Ronaldo’s message to the Atletico fans

This was Ronaldo’s first game back in Madrid since leaving Real for Juventus in a £100million transfer last summer.

Predictably, he was given a hostile reception by the home crowd – but appeared to retaliate with a reminder of his success. 

The Metropolitano Stadium teased Ronaldo with ‘pay your taxes’ chants. He responded by showing five fingers – one for every Champions League he has won, two against Atletico. 

Ronaldo was captured holding up five fingers as he was booed by the Atletico supporters

Liverpool stars Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Daniel Sturridge pose on the red carpet at BRIT Awards 

• Liverpool’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Daniel Sturridge were at BRIT Awards
• Oxlade-Chamberlain joined his girlfriend Perrie Edwards at the ceremony 
• Striker Daniel Sturridge presented the award for Best Male to George Ezra 

By

Jeorge Bird For Mailonline

Published:
16:49 EST, 20 February 2019

|
Updated:
16:49 EST, 20 February 2019

Liverpool stars Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Daniel Sturridge were both in attendance at the BRIT Awards on Wednesday night.

Oxlade-Chamberlain wore a striking black outfit as he accompanied his girlfriend, Little Mix singer Perrie Edwards, at the awards ceremony at the O2 Arena in London. 

Fellow Liverpool player Sturridge, meanwhile, was also in attendance. 

Liverpool star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain attended the BRIT Awards with his girlfriend, Little Mix star Perrie Edwards

Oxlade-Chamberlain, who is closing in on a return from injury, wore a striking outfit

The striker also took to the stage as he joined Paloma Faith to present George Ezra with the award for Best Male.

Host Jack Whitehall, an Arsenal fan, couldn’t resist making a joke at Sturridge’s expense as he referred to the 29-year-old as a ‘Premier League runner-up in waiting’. 

Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge was also in attendance at the awards ceremony

Sturridge joined Paloma Faith to present George Ezra with the award for Best Male

Sturridge was an unused substitute as Liverpool drew 0-0 with Bayern Munich on Tuesday night in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

Oxlade-Chamberlain wasn’t involved in that game, but the England international is closing in on a return after a serious knee injury.

Liverpool are currently in second place in the Premier League, although they are level on points with leaders Manchester City having played a game less. 

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‘I made mistakes… it will not happen again’: Manchester United star Anthony Martial issues apology to fiancee Melanie da Cruz amid infidelity reports

• Manchester United’s Anthony Martial apologised to fiancee Melanie da Cruz 
• Martial reportedly cheated on Da Cruz with a model in July last year 
• Da Cruz gave birth to her and Martial’s first child together, Swan, in July

By

Jeorge Bird For Mailonline

Published:
16:21 EST, 20 February 2019

|
Updated:
16:27 EST, 20 February 2019

Manchester United star Anthony Martial has issued an apology to his fiancee Melanie da Cruz.

Martial posted a picture of himself on Instagram with his fiancee. He accompanied the image with the caption: ‘I would like to apologise to my relatives, my beautiful family and especially my fiancee for the harm I have done in recent months! 

‘I made mistakes and I’m sorry it will not happen again!’. 

Anthony Martial issued an apology to his fiancée Melanie da Cruz on Instagram

It was not clear what the statement was directly referencing but there were reports earlier this month that claimed Martial cheated on Da Cruz last July while she was pregnant. 

According to the Daily Star Sunday, Martial allegedly slept with model Malika Semichi at a Paris hotel.  

Last December, Martial hit back at claims he had been unfaithful via social media.

In a picture alongside Da Cruz, Martial wrote: ‘There will always be bad people, jealous in this world who will be ready to tell lots of bulls*** to be able to exist but thanks to God I know which way I go with the best by my side.’

Da Cruz gave birth to her and Martial’s first child together, a boy named Swan, in July.

The statement follows reports that Martial cheated on da Cruz while she was pregnant

United star Martial hit out at reports last December that he had been unfaithful 

Martial has a daughter, Peyton, from a previous relationship with his childhood sweetheart Emily Wademan. 

This season Martial has scored eleven goals for United in 28 appearances across all competitions. 

The Frenchman signed a new contract with United last month that runs until the summer of 2024 and includes an option for a further year. 

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Schalke equalise against Manchester City thanks to VAR penalty… taken more than FOUR minutes after ball struck Nicolas Otamendi’s arm

• There was plenty of drama in the first half between Manchester City and Schalke
• Schalke came from behind thanks to two penalties, one with a lot of controversy
• A huge amount of time was taken for the referee to make the penalty decision 

By

Matt Porter For Mailonline

Published:
15:53 EST, 20 February 2019

|
Updated:
16:06 EST, 20 February 2019

Manchester City looked to be in control of their Champions League tie against Schalke thanks to a first half goal from Sergio Aguero, but Schalke got a goal back through a penalty kick.

However, it wasn’t without controversy, as the referee took a long amount of time to check VAR over the decision.

Between the amount of time the ball struck Nicolas Otamendi’s hand in the box and the penalty being scored, four minutes and 26 seconds elapsed.

The ball strikes Nicolas Otamendi’s hand in the box, but the penalty was not originally given

There were a lot of protests from both sides while the referee sent the decision to the VAR

Eventually, over four minutes after the incident happened, Schalke scored the penalty kick

The decision itself took two minutes and 43 seconds to make, as the referee brought over both captains to try and stop both teams protesting to the officials.

The drama continued as it was still over a minute until the goal was scored after the decision was given. 

Nabil Bentaleb was the man to step up and put the pressure of the time delay behind him, and he managed to score, leveling the match at 1-1. 

Otamendi was given a yellow card for the handball, setting up yet more protests. 

The referee had to bring both captains over to get their players to stop with their complaining

Even after the penalty was given, it was still over a minute until Nabil Bentaleb scored it

Misery kept piling up on top of Pep Guardiola and City, as they were behind just a few minutes later to yet another penalty kick, after Fernandinho committed a foul in the box. 

The Champions League has only implemented the VAR system for the last 16 phase, so it’s still early days for the technology in the competition. 

Former referee Peter Walton was questioned at half time on BT Sport about whether the decision was correct and why it took so long.

‘Yes it’s the right decision,’ he said. ‘The ball was coming at a distance, Otamendi has had every opportunity to pull his arm out the way.  

‘If you notice, he actually makes a fist, so he’s making his arm strong in the anticipation the ball’s going to strike it. At the very last moment he decides “hey I’m going to pull my arm out the way here” and it’s hit his arm.’

However, the pundits in the studio didn’t agree with his view of the situation.

‘I don’t agree,’ said Rio Ferdinand. ‘He’s so close it’s difficult to get your arm completely out the way. His motion is going backwards away from the ball. I find it hard to give that penalty.’ 

More to follow.  

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