Real Madrid defender Marcelo was relieved to avoid the same outcome as La Liga rival Barcelona after Wednesday’s thrilling Champions League quarter-final triumph over Juventus.

A day after Barcelona was knocked out of the Champions League when Roma overturned a first leg defeat with a decisive 3-0 victory in Italy, Serie A leader Juventus nearly repeated a similar remarkable comeback until a stoppage-time penalty ultimately secured Real Madrid’s place in the semi-finals.

Marcelo admitted Barcelona’s stunning elimination was on his mind, but insisted his belief in Real Madrid’s ability to progress never wavered.

“What happened to Barcelona wasn’t going to happen to us because we’re Real Madrid,” he said, as translated by Marca.

“I said ‘imagine the same thing happening to us?'” he added, according to ESPN FC

“… We believed we could score a goal that would help us go through the round and we did it.

While Barcelona is on the verge of winning La Liga for the third time in four seasons, Real Madrid will have to get past either Roma, Liverpool, or Bayern Munich for a chance to win its third consecutive Champions League trophy.

The Champions League quarter-final encounter Wednesday featuring teams from Italy and Spain triggered another round of emotional reactions from the great footballing nations following Tuesday’s dramatics.

Juventus’ attempt to repeat the unlikely feat that Roma accomplished a day before against Barcelona ended in heartbreaking fashion. A controversial penalty, followed by the sending-off of legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, helped Real Madrid progress to the semi-finals.

Unlike the reaction that followed Roma’s triumph, the Italian press was up in arms over Juve’s elimination, while the outlook of Catalan papers contrasted with the views of other Spanish outlets that praised the tenacious Los Blancos. Here’s a look at the front pages and headlines (translated by Football Italia).

Related: Italian press hails Roma while Spanish papers lampoon Barca’s humiliating loss

Italy

‘What a robbery!’

Corriere dello Sport was outraged by Juve’s elimination, suggesting a non-existent penalty benefited Real Madrid and that referee Michael Oliver should be ashamed.

‘The rage and the pride’

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the penalty call that paved the way for Juve’s elimination was “very dubious.”

‘Not like that! Immense Juve go out’

Tuttosport saluted Juventus for putting up an admirable fight at the Bernabeu.

Spain

‘It was a penalty!’

Madrid-based outlet Marca, meanwhile, didn’t see what all the fuss was about and declared that Oliver made the correct call.

(Photo courtesy: Marca)

‘Master in refereeing’

Mundo Deportivo chose a somewhat controversial image of Medhi Benatia appearing to win the ball fairly for its front page. Although some accused the Catalan-based paper of photoshopping the image, it appears that Mundo Deportivo chose a picture of the incident after Benatia made contact with Lucas Vazquez.

‘The theft of the century’

Catalan newspaper Sport didn’t sugarcoat its opinion on the penalty decision, as it slammed Oliver’s call and subsequent sending-off of Buffon in what was expected to be the goalkeeper’s final Champions League match.

(Photo courtesy: Marca)