Brave Bolton battle through

Battling Bolton reached the last 16 of the UEFA Cup after holding Spanish giants Atletico Madrid to a goalless draw.

Leading 1-0 from the first leg at the Reebok Stadium, Wanderers got the draw they needed after producing a perfect defensive display.

Atletico created most of the goalscoring opportunities, but they could find no way through, with Luis Garcia blazing over one of their best chances in the first half.

It was the Trotters who almost came closest to taking the lead inside the opening 10 minutes when Stelios Giannakopoulos found space on the right side of the area, and home goalkeeper Christian Abbiati needed to be alert to tip over the Greek midfielder's well-struck shot.

Luis Garcia then had arguably Atletico's best chance when Diego Forlan's low cross found him unmarked at the far post.

However, the former Liverpool player blazed his shot over with only Jussi Jaaskelainen to beat and the opportunity was lost.

Away from the pitch, Spanish riot police were called into action following some trouble behind one of the goals where the Atletico fans are normally housed.

It was not immediately apparent what caused the incident but the area behind the goal remained largely empty for the rest of the match.

In the second half Forlan, Mariano Pernia and Jose Manuel Jurado saw three efforts bravely blocked in rapid succession following a free-kick on the edge of the Bolton area, epitomising the Barclays Premier League side's determination to keep the hosts out.

It was all hands to the pump in the Bolton defence by this stage, with Atletico pushing more and more men forward in a bid to keep their UEFA Cup dreams alive but Gary Megson's men held on to advance.