Tottenham backtrack on Vicario decision after just 16 minutes of Atletico hammering

Tottenham and former Juventus head coach Igor Tudor were forced to backtrack on their decision to drop goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario for Tuesday night’s Champions League clash against Atletico Madrid, bringing the Italy international on after just 16 minutes after going 3-0 down. 

The Italy international was left out of Tottenham’s starting line-up for Tuesday evening’s Champions League round of 16 first leg match against Atletico Madrid, with Tudor opting to hand a first European start to Antonin Kinsky instead. Many Spurs supporters celebrated the decision to drop Vicario after a series of unconvincing performances this season. 

However, Tottenham found themselves three goals down after a quarter of an hour in Madrid, and in extraordinary scenes, Tudor decided to sub off Kinsky and bring on Vicario after little over a quarter of an hour. 

Kinsky was punished for a slip that led to Atletico’s opener, and made a second error that led to Julian Alvarez’s goal for 3-0. 

The onslaught didn’t stop there, though, as Robin Le Normand added a fourth for Atletico Madrid from a corner following Vicario’s substitution. Pedro Porro then pulled one back for Tottenham in a crazy first 25 minutes in Madrid. 

Watch: Vicario called into action after 16 minutes of Atletico Madrid vs. Tottenham

Kinský is replaced by Vicario after a difficult start against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/1EAxtRoXuE

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) March 10, 2026