Suarez nets 2 as Barca rallies to beat short-handed Atletico
BARCELONA, Spain — Luis Suarez scored two second-half goals to lead Barcelona to a 2-1 comeback victory over 10-man Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday.
Fernando Torres opened the scoring in the 25th minute, but quickly went from hero to villain for Atletico when two reckless tackles saw him sent off in the 35th.
Atletico resisted the defending champion’s push for an equalizer until Suarez finally levelled with an opportunistic goal in the 63rd.
Suarez then put Barcelona ahead in the 74th when he played Dani Alves wide before sending the Brazil defender’s cross past goalkeeper Jan Oblak with an unstoppable header.
“Torres’s red card was crucial because everyone knows about the quality he has,” Suarez said after scoring his team-high seventh and eight goals in the Champions League this season.
“It was a shame because it would have been great to come back against 11 players. The most important thing is that we won.”
Also on Tuesday, Bayern Munich edged Benfica 1-0 in their quarterfinal first leg.
Barcelona’s fight back comes three days after Real Madrid ended Barcelona’s Spanish record 39-match unbeaten streak with a 2-1 win at Camp Nou.
Besides recovering its winning ways after the disappointing “clasico” defeat, Luis Enrique’s side avenged its exit at the hands of Atletico from the 2013-14 quarter-finals with its club-record 11th consecutive home win in the competition.
Suarez took his overall haul to 45 goals this season, as he and strike partners Lionel Messi and Neymar recovered their dominant form after underwhelming against Real.
But at full strength, Atletico’s disciplined defence, which had Diego Godin back in the middle after an injury layoff, disrupted Barcelona’s attack, a promising sign that coach Diego Simeone can take into the second leg in addition to the away goal.
“We are alive,” said Simeone, who had to cool down after the match to avoid criticizing the referee for sending off Torres.