Mario Lemina’s early diving header handed Galatasaray a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in its Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday, leaving the tie finely balanced after a compelling contest in which both sides saw goals disallowed.
The Turkish champion struck after seven minutes when Lemina nodded home after Victor Osimhen headed a corner back across goal, giving it a precious advantage ahead of the second leg at Anfield.
The result mirrored September’s league phase encounter between the sides, when Galatasaray also won 1-0 thanks to an Osimhen penalty.
Both teams thought they had scored late on, only to be denied by the officials.
Just after the hour mark, Osimhen tapped the ball into an open net, but Liverpool was spared as Baris Alper Yilmaz had strayed offside in the build-up.
Liverpool found the net in the 70th minute, forcing the ball over the line after a goalmouth scramble, with the effort ruled out following a VAR review as the ball had seemingly struck Ibrahima Konate’s hand before ricocheting into the net.
Galatasaray had reached the last 16 after beating Juventus 7-5 on aggregate in the playoffs, while Liverpool qualified directly after finishing third in the league phase.
Atletico Madrid thrashes Tottenham 5-2
Atletico Madrid tore Tottenham Hotspur apart in a stunning first-half blitz on Tuesday, powering to a 5-2 victory in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie and leaving the Premier League side with a mountain to climb in London.
The visitor’s 22-year-old goalkeeper, Antonin Kinsky, endured a night to forget on his first appearance since October and only his third of the season.
Marcos Llorente struck after six minutes when Kinsky slipped while playing the ball out and Antoine Griezmann doubled the lead in the 14th when Micky van de Ven also lost his footing.
A minute later, Julian Alvarez walked in the third after Kinsky miscued a clearance, the earliest a team has gone three goals up in a Champions League knockout match.
After Kinsky was replaced by Guglielmo Vicario, Atletico added a fourth when Robin Le Normand’s header crossed the line following a rebound from Griezmann’s free kick. Tottenham defender Pedro Porro reduced the deficit after 26 minutes.
Alvarez then raced from his own half to score the host’s fifth goal in the 55th before Dominic Solanke punished an error by Atletico ‘keeper Jan Oblak, which gifted Spurs a second goal.
“We’re very happy with the win and the three-goal lead, but there are still 90 minutes left to play on their home turf,” Alvarez told Movistar Plus.
“We know what this competition is like. Every detail counts, it’s not going to be easy, but we want to be in the quarter-finals.”
Published on Mar 11, 2026
