Atletico Madrid exposed Tottenham’s defensive frailties to claim a dominant 5-2 advantage in the Champions League last-16 first leg.

The Premier League side fell 4-0 down inside 22 minutes with three glaring mistakes, including two by goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, leading to the hosts’ first three goals at the Metropolitano stadium.

Julian Alvarez netted twice for Diego Simeone’s side, with Marcos Llorente, Antoine Griezmann and Robin Le Normand also on target in the Spanish capital.

Pedro Porro pulled one back for the visitors and Dominic Solanke added another as they fell to a sixth straight defeat across all competitions but salvaged a shred of hope for the second leg.

“Unfortunately, it happened in this big game, these mistakes. So we paid for this start of the game, it was too much for us,” said interim Spurs coach Igor Tudor.

Tudor had said he was approaching the game as a chance to try and come up with solutions to the team’s many problems, with the club’s main focus on avoiding relegation from the Premier League.

The Croatian selected 22-year-old Czech goalkeeper Kinsky over Guglielmo Vicario, for his first appearance since last October, with the north London side having conceded two goals in each of the nine prior Premier League matches.

The decision could not have backfired quicker, with Kinsky slipping as he tried to pass the ball out from the back, giving it straight to Ademola Lookman.

The Nigeria winger found Alvarez who squared for Llorente to stroke home after just six minutes — four minutes longer than it took them to concede against Liverpool in the 2019 Champions League final at the same stadium.

In what fast became a comedy of errors for those watching on, including former Tottenham coach Mauricio Pochettino, Spurs then conceded two goals in two minutes to fall three behind.

Micky van de Ven fell over, allowing Griezmann to run through on goal and net Atletico’s second, before Kinsky committed another grievous mistake.

The goalkeeper, making his debut in the competition, miskicked a pass and the ball fell for Alvarez to run it into an empty net.

Tudor took action, replacing Kinsky with Vicario after 17 minutes, with Atletico’s fans jubilantly applauding off the devastated goalkeeper.

“The team is with him, me too, he understands the moment and why he went out,” Tudor told reporters.

“I’ve been coaching for 15 years, I’ve never done this. It was necessary to preserve the guy, preserve the team.”

Vicario made a brilliant save to keep Pape Sarr’s header out of his own goal but Le Normand was on home to nod home the rebound for Atletico’s fourth inside 22 minutes.

Four minutes later Pedro Porro hit back after combining with Richarlison to stem the tide.

Vicario denied Lookman, Llorente fired wide and Cristian Romero nodded against the post at the other end as a wild first half came to a close without further goals.

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Tudor sent on Conor Gallagher at half-time against his former side, with Atletico fans giving the midfielder a warm reception.

They were cheering even louder a few minutes later as Alvarez put away the fifth when Griezmann sent him scuttling through on goal on the counter, after Jan Oblak saved superbly from Richarlison.

Spurs pulled another one back when Atletico stopper Oblak made a mistake of his own with a poor pass straight to Porro, and substitute Dominic Solanke rifled home.

Despite an improved showing after the break there was no way back on the night for Spurs, who have lost all four matches since Tudor replaced Thomas Frank in February and are 16th in the Premier League.

In stoppage time Joao Palhinha and Romero had an ugly clash of heads and both came off, adding to Spurs’ worries.

Solanke’s goal gave them a lifeline in the tie but their upcoming Premier League matches against Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, either side of the second leg, are the clear priority with top flight survival on the line.

Atletico have bigger aspirations, having finished as runners-up in the 2014 and 2016 finals, and are desperate to win the competition for the first time.

“I’m very happy, for the win and the three-goal advantage, but there are 90 minutes to go,” Alvarez told Movistar.

“They had their errors, we knew how to take advantage and we did well pressing to help generate that.”

– AFP

Photo: REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura