Sørloth hat-trick books Atletico's meeting with Liverpool or Spurs

Madrid, Spain – Alexander Sørloth plundered a second-half hat-trick as Atlético Madrid overpowered Club Brugge 4-1 at the Metropolitano, sealing a 7-4 aggregate triumph and a place in the Champions League last 16.

The Norway striker ended the tie as a contest midway through the opening period when he latched onto Jan Oblak’s long clearance and saw a speculative effort squeeze past Simon Mignolet. Brugge, undeterred, levelled almost immediately when Joel Ordoñez, still sporting bandaging after treatment for a bloody nose, headed in a corner at the near post.

Oblak preserved parity with a fingertip stop from Hugo Vetlesen’s diving header, yet the visitors’ resistance crumbled three minutes after the restart. United States midfielder Johnny Cardeso collected possession 20 metres out and arrowed a low shot that took a nick off a defender on its way into the corner.

With 14 minutes remaining Sørloth struck again, steering home from close range, and the 28-year-old completed his treble in the closing stages with a clever finish to make it 4-1 on the night.

The result means Atlético, who have conceded in every European outing this season, advance to Friday’s draw where they will face either Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur, both of whom secured top-eight finishes in the league phase. The same draw will map out the remainder of the knockout bracket.

Elsewhere in the play-off round, Bayer Leverkusen take a 2-0 lead into their home leg against Olympiacos Piraeus, Inter welcome Bodø/Glimt after losing the first leg in Norway, and Newcastle carry a commanding advantage into their tie with Qarabag.