AP, Madrid :
Atletico Madrid and Celta Vigo played to a 0-0 draw and Barcelona defeated Athletic Bilbao 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday.
Barcelona got the away victory but Aritz Aduriz’s late goal kept Athletic alive going into next week’s second leg at the Camp Nou. Atletico and Celta will play the return match at the Vicente Calderon Stadium in Madrid, where Atletico has won its last nine matches.
Atletico relied on solid defending to keep the hosts from scoring, but Diego Simeone’s team failed to take its chances on counterattacks.
Celta nearly scored in the 82nd but Gabi Fernandez cleared the ball just in front of the goal line to maintain the deadlock.
“It was an open match, but they had more ball possession,” Simeone said. “Now any draw other than 0-0 will benefit them. We need the victory at any cost.”
The sides had met in the Spanish league just 10 days ago, with Atletico winning 2-0 in Vigo.
