Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone has claimed that their 2-1 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Tuesday will live in the memory of spectators.

Piero Hincapie had put Leverkusen a goal up in the first half, following Pablo Barrios' red card for Atleti, which had looked like it put the visitors on course for victory.

But the game turned with Julian Alvarez's second-half equaliser. Hincapie was then sent off for a second bookable offence in the 76th minute before Atletico's Argentine striker won the game in the 90th minute.

The three points leaves Simeone's side third in the league phase, with their final match coming against Red Bull Salzburg, who have already been knocked out, next week. 

Atletico are the first team in Champions League history to have three 90th minute winners in one season, having also done so against RB Leipzig and Paris Saint-Germain. 

"It's a game that will be remembered by the people that saw it," Simeone said on Tuesday. "They were better in the first half. They didn't let us get the ball. One team played, and the other didn't get into the game.

"What happened in the second half isn't a coincidence, the team has done it in other games. We equalised, they had the sending off, we felt we could win it. We took the chance we had, and won an emotional Champions League game. It's a beautiful moment for the fans."

5 - @9julianalvarez  has scored five goals with @atletienglish in the current @ChampionsLeague season (seven games), equalling his record for a single season in the competition reached last season with #ManCity (also five goals in seven games). Scratch. pic.twitter.com/cq0yjr5lxE

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) January 21, 2025

Goalscorer Alvarez, meanwhile, has had a hand in 14 goals in his last 13 home Champions League appearances for Manchester City and Atletico (11 goals, three assists), with 79% of his goals in the competition coming on home soil (11/14).

The Argentine acknowledged the part his team-mates played in Atletico's turnaround victory, suggesting that their fitness and belief got them the three points.

"[After Barrios' red card] we knew that we had to multiply ourselves playing as a team. These are three very important points and help us to continue believing in what we are doing," Alvarez told Movistar Plus.

"I'm very happy because it wasn't easy for everything that happened in the game, being down a man, conceding a goal, it wasn't looking good, but we played our game with humility.

"The equaliser came and in the last few minutes we knew we could find the win if we left everything we had on the pitch." 

On the other side of things, Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso was disappointed with the manner of the goals they conceded and the lack of maturity he thinks his side showed.

"Julian equalised out of nothing," Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso said. "It's not just about football, it's about maturity. We have to improve if we want to compete."

Leverkusen lost a Champions League game in which they scored the first goal for the first time since September 2015 against Barcelona, having gone 15 unbeaten before Tuesday (W9 D6) and will be hopeful of a response against Sparta Prague next Wednesday.