This all-conquering Inter side, who had emerged victorious in all of their previous 13 matches this calendar year, held a slender 1-0 advantage heading into this intriguingly poised second leg, with Diego Simeone welcoming his former employers to the Spanish capital.
Eager to quickly erase the deficit, Atletico posed an early question of Inter’s back line when the effervescent Samuel Lino weaved his way down the left-hand side and forced Yann Sommer into a one-handed save.
The focus then turned to Inter’s lively Dutchman, as Denzel Dumfries was denied by Jan Oblak at the end of a free-flowing Nerazzurri move. This was a gripping end-to-end contest, with Alvaro Morata’s header kept out by Sommer following Mario Hermoso’s enticing delivery from the left flank.
However, it was Inter that struck first to double their aggregate advantage in a devastating attack which resulted in Federico Dimarco's clinical strike from Nicolò Barella's sublime delivery. But just when Inter looked to be coasting towards the break, some uncharacteristically sloppy Inter defending allowed Koke’s lofted pass to make its way towards Antoine Griezmann, who manoeuvred his body brilliantly to fire home.
The Mattress Makers were quick out of traps as play resumed, as Marcos Llorente picked out
Griezmann before the France international was thwarted by Sommer on this occasion. Simone Inzaghi’s side were doing their best to slow the game down, sitting back and dropping deeper in a bid to cut out the spaces for Atletico to exploit. The hosts were looking for inspiration from somewhere with the intensity of their play dropping, and the twinkle-toed Rodrigo Riquelme almost provided when his deflected attempt went wide.
Marcus Thuram had a chance to add a second Inter goal and a potential sucker-punch in the tie after the Frenchman was beautifully teed up by Lautaro Martínez, but blazed his effort over the bar, enraging Inzaghi on the touchline. Thuram would come to rue that miss, as substitute Memphis Depay restored their lead on the night and levelled the aggregate score at 2-2 with a stunning turn and finish from Koke’s pass. Griezmann then laid the ball on a plate for Riquelme to secure a dramatic winner, but smashed his attempt over the bar as extra-time beckoned.
Riquelme was an ever-present threat and picked out Depay for another potential moment of glory, but Sommer was equal to his effort on this occasion. Chances were flooding in for both sides, as Martínez headed wide from Hakan Calhanoglu’s corner.
Somewhat predictably, the tie went to penalties, and after Calhanoglu and Depay smashed their respective efforts home, Oblak took centre stage to deny Alexis Sanchez and Davy Klaassen from the spot before Martínez blazed his attempt over the bar to curtail an incredible night of action.
Atlético go into the pot for Friday’s draw and continue their remarkable home form, which has seen Simeone’s side lose only one of 21 previous games across all competitions at the Estadio Metropolitano. Meanwhile, Inter’s hopes of avenging last season’s defeat in the final were extinguished in what has been a big European blemish on an otherwise superb domestic campaign to date.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
