Leverkusen vs. Atletico Madrid: Score, Reaction from 2017 Champions League Match

Atletico Madrid took a big step toward the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, as they earned an impressive 4-2 win at Bayern Leverkusen in the first leg of their round-of-16 tussle.

Saul Niguez fired the visitors in front with a sumptuous strike in the 17th minute, and they doubled their advantage before the break when Antoine Griezmann got on the scoresheet.

Three minutes after the restart, the Bundesliga side responded quickly through Karim Bellarabi, but a Kevin Gameiro penalty restored Atletico's two-goal advantage. A Stefan Savic own goal set up a frantic finish, but Fernando Torres added the gloss to a fine night for the La Liga side.

In front of a raucous crowd at the BayArena, you would have expected a fast start from Leverkusen. But they were passive in the early stages and allowed Atletico to secure a foothold.

PATRIK STOLLARZ/Getty Images

The visitors made their dominance pay off pretty quickly, as Saul scurried infield from the right flank and lofted a superb curling shot toward goal. It took a tiny deflection off the defender and looped over a stranded Bernd Leno.

Per sports journalist Clark Whitney, there was little Leverkusen could do about a real piece of class:

After falling behind, their defending did start to unravel, though. The movement of Griezmann and Gameiro was pulling the Leverkusen defence all over the field, and it was no surprise to see them combine for Atleti's second of the evening.

In the 25th minute, Gameiro surged forward into space, drew two defenders and played in his compatriot to lash home. As noted by OptaJose, it was a landmark goal for Griezmann and the club:

Eventually, Leverkusen were lucky to get in at half-time only two down, with Griezmann seeing his close-range effort stopped by Leno. But after 15 minutes to recuperate, the hosts were much improved in the early stages of the second half, and Bellarabi gave them a route back into the match.

Benjamin Henrichs played a dangerous ball into the box, and the Germany international produced a calm finish to halve the deficit.

TF-Images/Getty Images

But Atletico are experienced operators in this competition and kept their composure well. Gameiro was still proving elusive to the Leverkusen defence and hammered a left-footed shot against the woodwork; he wouldn't have to wait long to get on the scoresheet, though.

Gameiro was pulled down in the box by Aleksandar Dragovic and made no mistake with the resultant spot-kick, thrashing his strike down the middle just before the hour mark. As WhoScored.com noted, the Atletico man is enjoying quite the purple patch:

Despite this significant blow, Leverkusen kept coming and, after a stroke of fortune, were back in the contest again on 68 minutes. Savic could only watch on as Miguel Moya spilled a routine cross from Julian Brandt against the defender, with the ball rebounding into the Atletico goal.

The hosts pushed forward in the final stages in search of an equaliser, with Javier Hernandez seeing his header stopped by Savic in the six-yard box.

PATRIK STOLLARZ/Getty Images

But as they bombed up the pitch, gaps were left, and with the clock ticking down, Torres was on the spot to head home another for the visitors. Leverkusen's Twitter account wasn't pleased:

This Atletico team may not be as defensively sound as the sides that made it to the final in 2014 and 2016, but in Gameiro, Griezmann and Torres, Diego Simeone has an array of firepower to trouble most teams in the competition.

With four away goals secured for the Spaniards, it will take a monumental effort from Leverkusen to turn this one around, and given the way they defended here, it's difficult to see them keeping Atletico out at the Vicente Calderon.

Post-Match Reaction

Bayer boss Roger Schmidt praised the visitors on their ruthlessness in front of goal and lamented his own team's inability to find an equaliser:

After the match, Saul admitted the goal will live long in the memory, per the Atletico Twitter feed:

Simeone beamed at the team's display, praising the work of his front two in particular. "Gameiro has never had a better game for us," he said, per the UEFA website. "Griezmann did very well too. I can go back to Madrid with a big smile on my face."