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A double from Chemsdine Talbi saw the visitors race to a 3-0 lead at halftime before fending off a second-half onslaught to stun the Italians
Published : 19 Feb 2025, 09:38 AM
Club Brugge teenager Chemsdine Talbi's double helped his side to get a three-goal lead at Atalanta before they held off a second-half onslaught for a 3-1 victory in their Champions League playoff on Tuesday to reach the last 16 by 5-2 on aggregate.
Ferran Jutgla netted the visitors’ other goal as Brugge stunned the Italian side by taking a 3-0 halftime lead, but they had to fight a desperate rearguard action in the second period as the hosts tried to conjure up an unlikely comeback.
Ademola Lookman pulled back one goal for Atalanta but then had a penalty saved by veteran goalkeeper Simon Mignolet, who made several other important stops to stymie home hopes and see the Belgian side advance to the next round.
They will face either Lille or Aston Villa, with their opponents to be decided in Friday's draw.
Brugge took a slender 2-1 lead from last week’s first leg to the Stadio di Bergamo but extended it within three minutes through Talbi.
Jutgla hooked the ball across goal to the 19-year-old, whose quick feet worked a shooting chance and he fired low into the bottom corner of the net from 15 metres.
The visitors doubled their advantage midway through the first half when Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi could only parry Christos Tzolis’s shot and Talbi fired in the rebound for his second goal.
Three minutes into stoppage time at the end of the first period, Brugge had a third goal from Jutgla’s rasping low shot after catching Atalanta on the counter-attack.
Seconds earlier, the home side had seen Davide Zappacosta’s shot pushed on to the Brugge post by the hand of Mignolet and then a follow-up save before a third effort was cleared off the line by Brandon Mechele.
PENALTY MISS
Atalanta brought on Lookman, recently returned from injury, at the start of the second half in the hope that last season’s Europa League final hero could spark a comeback.
The London-born Nigeria international took all of 35 seconds to pull back a goal, stretching his leg to steer home Zappacosta’s cross and revive the home crowd.
But he squandered the opportunity to get his name on the scoresheet again when his penalty on the hour was saved by the 36-year-old Mignolet.
A lengthy VAR check saw Atalanta awarded the spot kick after Tzolis was adjudged to have tugged back Juan Cuadrado after a free kick.
Mignolet’s stop proved decisive as it drained some of the atmosphere and although Atalanta kept up their relentless attacks, they became increasing desperate in the closing stages and were competently dealt with by the Belgians.
“From the first half onwards, we defended the box together with body and soul. Even in the second half, when you know they are coming at you, we held that line and when a ball did get through, I was in the right place,” said Mignolet.
"These things happen in football. We took to the field with the desire to do well but they were perfect on the counter-attacks, while we didn't take advantage of the opportunities we had," said Cuadrado.
Atalanta finished with 10 men when frustrated captain Rafael Toloi was shown a straight red card for a shove on Maxim De Cuyper as the pair argued over a throw-in.
Atalanta’s elimination added to a calamitous night for Italian football following AC Milan’s exit after they were held to a 1-1 draw by visitors Feyenoord and went out of Europe's elite clubcompetition 2-1 on aggregate.
