Sports Desk:

Real Madrid reached the Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday, defeating Atletico Madrid in a dramatic penalty shootout after their last-16 second leg.

The defending champions entered the match with a 2-1 advantage from the first leg. Atletico took a 1-0 lead early, with Conor Gallagher scoring just 30 seconds in following a deflected pass.

The match remained tense for the remaining 119 minutes, with Vinicius Jr. missing a penalty in the second half.

The game went to penalties, where Madrid won 4-2. After missed kicks from Julian Alvarez, Marcos Llorente, and Lucas Vazquez, Toni Rudiger converted the decisive penalty, which Jan Oblak nearly saved.

Alvarez’s penalty was ruled out by VAR for a double touch.

Madrid will now face Arsenal in the quarterfinals, while Atletico shifts focus to La Liga and the Copa del Rey.

On Sunday, Atleti hosts FC Barcelona, trailing them by one point in the league, with Madrid in second.