It’s a familiar foe in a different competition, as Atlético de Madrid face FC Barcelona for the second time in five days.
The first chapter of this clash, a heated and dramatic encounter in LALIGA, went Barcelona’s way. Now, with a place in the UEFA Champions League semifinals at stake, expect an even more intense and fiercely-contested battle in this quarterfinal first leg, as Atlético find themselves in the midst of a three-match losing streak during arguably their toughest stretch of the season.
Diego Simeone took a calculated risk in rotating in his “B-team” over the weekend against Hansi Flick’s side, and it almost paid off before Nico Gonzalez took matters into his own hands (literally). Atlético had their chances but were undone by Nico’s red card, followed by an even more surprising overturn of a Gerard Martín red card.
The result should give Simeone’s men some extra confidence as their second squad played a man down and defended like their lives were on the line against a very strong Barcelona.
Los Colchoneros have been a mixed bag in the Champions League. After finishing the league phase in 14th place, Simeone’s men were drawn against Club Brugge in the knockout playoff round, and they went on to beat the Belgians 7-4 on aggregate.
Atlético were given a fortunate draw in the Round of 16 when they handed Tottenham Hotspur, who are fighting relegation in the Premier League. The Rojiblancos defeated Spurs 7-5 on aggregate and will now face one of their biggest Spanish rivals in the last eight. Perhaps most importantly, Atlético stole Tottenham’s home-field advantage and will get the return leg at home next Tuesday.
It’s tough to find a hotter team in Europe than Barcelona right now. The Blaugrana are winners of nine in a row in all competitions, highlighted by a 7-2 thrashing of Newcastle and a 3-0 victory at the Camp Nou against this same Atlético squad in the Copa del Rey last month.
Saturday’s victory over Atlético saw Barcelona go seven points clear of Real Madrid and inch even closer to a LALIGA title. The match was one where Flick’s side should have won by multiple goals and got to rest key players ahead of a critical cup tie. It wasn’t. Barcelona could not break through for a winner until the dying moments of the game, when Robert Lewandowski shouldered home the dagger.
Barcelona left Madrid with three points, but they did not leave without a few bruises. Marc Bernal and Ronald Araújo both picked up injuries during the LALIGA clash. Araújo appears ready to suit up, while Bernal will be out for at least the first leg. Bernal will join Andreas Christensen, Frenkie de Jong and Raphinha in being ruled out for this matchup, while Lewandowski and Jules Koundé should be fit enough to start.
Team news
Simeone finally got some good news on the injury front, as Marc Pubill, Rodri Mendoza and Jan Oblak all fully trained with the group as normal. However, Oblak was left out of the squad on Tuesday, while José María Giménez picked up a knock late in the weekend’s match and won’t play either. Johnny Cardoso and Pablo Barrios are both out and recovering from their muscle injuries.
There’s a lot of optimism about Barrios’ presence in the return leg. Given the lack of available bodies in midfield of late, this would be a massive development for Atlétic0, assuming all goes to plan in the first leg.
Outside of injury concerns, Simeone will need to ensure the below players exercise caution, especially considering István Kovács will be the main referee for this matchup. If any of the below players receive a yellow card, they will miss the return leg at the Metropolitano:
- Marcos Llorente
- Marc Pubill
- Giuliano Simeone
- Thiago Almada
- Matteo Ruggeri
- Robin Le Normand
- Clément Lenglet
Back in March, the Romanian referee came under fire for how he handled the derby between FC Rapid București and FC Dinamo București. There were 10 total yellow cards, a VAR non-intervention on a goal that should have been disallowed for a clear foul, and the players and managers from both sides viewed he lost control of the match in the dying moments. It’s also worth noting that he issued 18 cards in a UEFA Euro 2024 match between the Czech Republic and Turkey.
It would appear that Simeone is still uncertain about who to start at RCB/RB. At RCB/RB, the man in black is deciding between Le Normand and Nahuel Molina. If Le Normand starts, Pubill will play right-back. If Molina starts, Pubill plays at right center-back. Le Normand defended fairly well on Saturday, outside of losing Marcus Rashford on the equalizing goal, while Molina did not defend very well but gives Atleti an extra attacking option on the right. The two Puskás-worthy goals from Molina in the month of March should give the Argentine loads of confidence.
Possible 11: Musso; Molina, Pubill, Hancko, Ruggeri; Koke, Llorente, Griezmann; Giuliano, Lookman, Alvarez.
Predicted scoreline: 2-3 Barcelona win. Lookman and Alvarez score for Atleti. Lamine Yamal to score a brace and Lewandowski to score the third.
Historical matchup
Atlético de Madrid hold a 81-57-115 all-time record against Barcelona in all competitions. The last match in the Camp Nou between the two sides was in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal back on March 3. Atlético lived the definition of suffering in that match, working very hard to preserve a four-goal lead that saw them advance to their first Copa del Rey final in 13 years.
To find the last meeting in the Champions League between the Rojiblancos and the Blaugrana, you would have to go back almost 10 years ago to April 12, 2016. This too was in the quarterfinals and was a particularly memorable match for the Colchoneros, who beat Barcelona 2-0 at the Vicente Calderón thanks to a brace from Antoine Griezmann. The victory in that match saw Atlético go past prime Messi-Suárez-Neymar Barça, 3-2 on aggregate, to advance to the Champions League semifinals.
Notably, Barça have only won one of their past four European clashes with Atlético. Simeone and company will hope that trend continues.
Notable players who have represented both clubs
Antoine Griezmann, Luis Suárez, David Villa, Sergio Agüero, Arda Turan, Memphis Depay, Joao Felix and Sergi Barjuán.
