Club Brugge gets disputed late penalty to beat Atalanta 2-1 in Champions League playoffs

By Canadian Press on February 12, 2025.

BRUGGE, Belgium (AP) — Club Brugge scored with a disputed penalty kick in stoppage time to beat Atalanta 2-1 in the first leg of their Champions League playoff on Wednesday.

Atalanta defender Isak Hien was judged to have raised a hand into the face of Brugge forward Gustaf Nilsson, his teammate in the Sweden national team, as they chased a loose ball.

After Turkish referee Umut Meler showed yellow cards to Hien and a teammate for protesting, Nilsson got up to win the game by sending Atalanta goalkeeper Rui Patricio the wrong way with his spot kick.

Brugge had led on former Barcelona forward Ferran Jutglà’s shot in the 15th minute and Atalanta leveled in the 41st on Mario Pašalić’s header. Atalanta hosts the second leg next Tuesday.

It was a meeting of teams that finished 24th and ninth, respectively, in the new 36-team single standings format — in theory the biggest mismatch of the eight knockout playoffs being played on back-to-back midweeks. The top eight teams in the standings last month advanced direct to the round of 16 in March, leaving Nos. 9 to 24 to compete for the other eight places.

Bayern Munich was in action later Wednesday for the first leg of its playoff at Scottish champion Celtic.

Bayern joins Real Madrid and Manchester City as Champions League title winners in the past five years who surprisingly found themselves in the knockout playoffs. Madrid won 3-2 in Manchester on Tuesday.

In other late games, Feyenoord was hosting AC Milan and Monaco was at home to Benfica.

Brugge led in the 15th by punishing Atalanta — winner of the second-tier Europa League last season — for casually passing the ball across the defense.

Teenage winger Chemsdine Talbi intercepted and crossed for Jutglà to control the ball and fire in the opening goal. It was a first goal for Jutglà, who went scoreless through the eight-game league phase.

Atalanta tied minutes before halftime on a glancing header by Croatia veteran Pašalić connecting with a cross by Davide Zappacosta.

Brugge kept Atalanta forward Charles De Ketelaere quiet on his return to the club he joined as a 7-year-old until leaving in 2022 for Italy, first to Milan. Atalanta was missing winger Ademola Lookman for the fourth straight game this month because of a knee injury.

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The Associated Press