Junior struggles to escape embarrassment in the Colombian Cup: he qualifies for the quarterfinals on penalties.

Junior de Barranquilla suffered a tough time against Atlético, who beat them 2-0 in the second leg of the 2025 Copa BetPlay Round of 16. This result, taking into account the accumulated total, left the match at 2-2 on aggregate, forcing a penalty shootout, where Junior advanced to the quarterfinals of the Colombian tournament.

Junior Escobar and Juan Farías scored the goals that gave the "Shark" team a hard time, as they didn't have their best night against the second division team, which currently occupies twelfth place in the tournament.

A surprising match for the "sharks," who weren't expecting such offensive power from Atlético, a team belonging to the second division of Colombian professional football. The Cali natives, on an inspired night, shone on their home turf throughout the 90 minutes.

Although the 'rojiblancos' had a slight advantage in possession, it was Atlético who dominated the attack with more shots on goal.

As a result, they were able to surprise and open the scoring in the final play of the first half. After a stellar team play, Junior Escobar was able to outwit the defense and shoot past goalkeeper Jefferson Martínez.

In the second half, Junior held on, but the big surprise came in the 79th minute, when they equalized with a goal from Juan Bautista Farías. This meant a penalty shootout.

Time ran out, Alfredo Arias' team failed to react, and the quarterfinalists had to take a penalty from the penalty spot. Junior came up big, made the hosts respect him, and advanced with a resounding 4-1 victory.

Now, they'll be watching closely to find out who their quarterfinal opponent will be, which will be the winner of the América series against Atlético Bucaramanga, with the Leopards winning by the narrowest margin.

This Wednesday, Envigado hosts Millonarios (3 p.m.) in the first leg of the Copa Colombia Round of 16. Nacional looks to wrap up the tie against Quindío (7:45 p.m., Win+ TV) after winning 4-0 in the first leg. América hosts Bucaramanga (5:15 p.m., Win+ Fútbol TV) and is down 1-0. DIM and Fortaleza (7:30 p.m.) are tied 0-0. This Tuesday, Pereira eliminated Real Cundinamarca and advanced.