Atalanta negotiated Valencia and an empty Mestalla Stadium in Spain on Tuesday to advance to the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals with a 4-3 second-leg win and 8-4 aggregate score line.
La Dea entered with a 4-1 advantage and got four goals from Josip Ilicic in the second leg. They qualify for the quarterfinals for the first time in its history.
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Ilicic converted a third-minute penalty to insure its lead, though Kevin Gameiro leveled the leg 18 minutes later.
Ilicic added a second penalty before the break. He scored five goals over the two legs.
Gameiro got his second off a Ferran Torres feed in the 51st minute, but Valencia needed four more goals.
The La Liga mainstay got a Torres goal with 23 minutes to play, but that was it for the comeback bid thanks to Ilicic completing his hat trick in the 71st minute.
Goooooooooooool del Atalanta, otra vez aparece Iličić dándole esperanza a la escuadra italiana⚽💥
🦇 @valenciacf vs @Atalanta_BC 🔵⁰⁰#UEFA | #Valencia | #Atalanta | #UCL
🔴En vivo: https://t.co/Txnui9nqjs pic.twitter.com/C4LUhRYUAT
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) March 10, 2020