BARCELONA/PARIS: Atletico Madrid shocked 10-man Barcelona by providing coach Diego Simeone with his first win in Camp Nou with goals from Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth securing a 2-0 success in their Champions League quarter-final first leg.

The night’s other match saw holders Paris Saint-Germain beat Liverpool by the same 2-0 margin in the French capital.

In Catalonia 10-man Barcelona dominated proceedings but Atletico’s solid defence combined ​with swift counter-attacks paid off after Pau Cubarsi was sent off for tripping Giuliano Simeone in the 42nd ‌minute as the last man.

Alvarez brilliantly curled the resulting free kick from 25 metres into the top corner in first-half stoppage time.

Marcus Rashford struck the bar from a free kick soon after halftime but Diego Simeone’s side remained disciplined and doubled their lead in the 70th minute when Matteo Ruggeri ​crossed from the left and Sorloth volleyed in from close range.

European champions Paris Saint-​Germain were a cut above Liverpool as goals by Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia spurred them to ‌an easy 2-0 home win in their first leg.

Doue and Kvaratskhelia struck either side of halftime to give Luis Enrique’s side a solid advantage ahead of next week’s return at Anfield, where PSG booked their place in the last ​eight last season.

Doue opened the scoring with a deflected effort before Kvaratskhelia doubled the lead with a superb ​solo run and finish, but PSG wasted a handful of chances that would have further ⁠strengthened their push for the semi-finals.

Liverpool, thrashed 4-0 by Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals at the weekend, ​set up cautiously with three centre backs and Mohamed Salah on the bench, but struggled to contain a PSG side ​that mixed patient possession with bursts of attacking intensity.

Manager Arne Slot opted for a back three with wings but the defence held for only 11 minutes at the Parc des Princes.

Doue picked up the ball on the left side of the box and his curled shot ​towards the opposite top corner took a slight deflection off Ryan Gravenberch and went out of Giorgi Mamardashvili’s reach.

Next, Ousmane Dembele missed a golden opportunity to double the advantage when he shot straight at the keeper at the end of a sharp transition.

Liverpool, who did not manage a ​single shot before the break, ​were fortunate to be only ⁠one goal behind. They looked bolder after the interval, but limited compared to PSG, who played keep-ball and tormented them with brutal changes of pace.

One of them came in the 65th minute when Joao Neves played in ⁠a racing ​Kvaratskhelia and the Georgian danced his way through the area, rounded Mamardashvili ​and slotted the ball home.

Coach Luis Enrique said: “Only two goals is a shame, clearly. We put in a performance worthy of our supporters. We played very well and ​deserved more goals. But this is the Champions League. We’re happy.”

####