Atletico Madrid fight back to beat Bayer Leverkusen despite red card

The Spanish side played with 10 men for 65 minutes but showed resilience, dominating the second half.

Julian Alvarez, a former Manchester City forward, proved the hero, scoring both goals for Atletico.

His first came in the 53rd minute, finishing off a counter-attack, before netting a dramatic 90th-minute winner. Alvarez expertly rounded Leverkusen goalkeeper Matej Kovar to seal the win.

The match was marred by key incidents. Atletico's Pablo Barrios was sent off in the 25th minute for a sliding challenge on Nordi Mukiele, which was reviewed by VAR and deemed a red card offence.

Leverkusen capitalised with a goal in first-half injury time as Piero Hincapie headed in from Mukiele's cross.

However, Hincapie's evening ended early, receiving a second yellow card for a foul on Giuliano Simeone, reducing Leverkusen to 10 men as well.

Leverkusen, reigning German champions, were visibly rattled in the second half, with Atletico capitalising on their mistakes.

Atletico manager Diego Simeone also voiced his frustration, feeling Florian Wirtz should have been sent off for a foul on Alvarez. 

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