SI

Tyler Adams's Goal Sends RB Leipzig Into Champions League Semifinals

The U.S. midfielder came off the bench and delivered a deflected goal in the 88th minute, sending RB Leipzig to a stage it's never reached before.

Avi Creditor

Tyler Adams didn't start RB Leipzig's Champions League quarterfinal vs. Atletico Madrid, but he had the final say.

The 21-year-old American midfielder's deflected shot from 20 yards was the difference in a 2-1 win, sending Leipzig to the semifinals for the first time in its history with arguably the most important club goal ever scored by an American abroad.

Adams had come on in the 72nd minute immediately after another rising star, Joao Felix, had come off the bench and delivered a game-tying penalty kick for Atletico Madrid.

Dani Olmo had opened the scoring for Leipzig in the 51st minute.

RB Leipzig started the game on the front foot, and it had the game's first chance, when defender Marcel Halstenberg had a ball fall to him inside the right of Atletico Madrid's box, only for him to overhit his left-footed volley.

Atletico Madrid's first chance on goal also came off a set piece, with Stefan Savic looping a header on target, only for goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi to leap up, grab the ball and come down with it just in front of the goal line.

Gulacsi was forced into another save moments later, with Renan Lodi and Yannick Carrasco combining down the left and the Belgian firing toward the near post in the 13th minute.

The physical nature of the game manifested itself in the 37th minute, when Halstenberg and Savic clashed heads, leaving the Atletico Madrid defender worse for the wear and needing to have his head wrapped during a lengthy stoppage.

Leipzig nearly scored off a corner kick in first-half stoppage time, but Dayot Upamecano's downward header bounced right into goalkeeper Jan Oblak's waiting arms.

Leipzig had been the better of the two teams in terms of continuous build-up, and one of its moves finally paid off. Olmo was the beneficiary, glancing a header off Marcel Sabitzer's cross by Oblak to make it 1-0 in the 50th minute and cap a tremendous 18-pass sequence in which the ball matriculated from one side to the other leading to the goal.

Felix came off the bench for Atletico Madrid in the 58th minute and provided the spark Simeone was hoping for soon after. In the 70th minute, he drew a penalty on a darting run into the box, getting taken down from behind by Lukas Klostermann. The 20-year-old impressively converted his spot kick with a powerful shot past a diving Gulacsi, who had guessed correctly but couldn't keep it out.

RB Leipzig turned to Adams as a substitute in response, and he made an even greater impact. Adams found himself with space to shoot from 20 yards after Angelino's cutback cross, and it took a friendly deflection of Savic to give RB Leipzig the lead and a place in the semifinals.

**********

Here were the lineups for both teams:

RB Leipzig will play PSG in the semifinals next Tuesday, with the victor advancing to the Aug. 23 final. 

Published
Avi Creditor
AVI CREDITOR

Avi Creditor is a senior editor and has covered soccer for more than a decade. He’s also a scrappy left back. 

Home/Soccer