Koke’s deflected shot gave Atletico a second-minute lead. Antoine Griezmann then made it two with a stylish finish. Atletico Madrid qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League with a dominant home victory over Thierry Henry’s struggling Monaco.
Radamel Falcao missed a late penalty for Monaco against his former club with Atletico’s Stefan Savic sent off having received his second booking of the match to concede the spot-kick.
It was a chastening experience for Henry whose Monaco side finally won for the first time under his management at Caen on Saturday. The penalty aside, they barely threatened against Diego Simeone’s well-drilled outfit.
With just one point from five games, they are set to finish bottom of Group A.
Borussia Dortmund are also through to the knockout stage but their goalless draw at home to Club Brugge leaves them needing Atletico Madrid to slip up in their final match against the Belgians to stand a chance of topping the group.
Napoli consolidate Group C lead
Group C is topped by Napoli who beat Red Star Belgrade 3-1 in Naples. Dries Mertens scored two outstanding goals after captain Marek Hamsik had opened the scoring early on. El Fardou Ben fired home a consolation for the Serbian side.
The result leaves Napoli needing a draw against Liverpool in the final group game to be certain of qualifying for the knockout stages. In Group D, Lokomotiv Moscow picked up their first points of the campaign with a 2-0 win at home to Galatasaray.
That score meant group leaders Porto and second-placed Schalke qualified for the last 16. The two sides met in Portugal with Porto winning 3-1 to ensure they top the group.
Source: BBC News
