Atletico Madrid hosts Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-final second leg, holding a 2-goal advantage from the first leg. The match is set to take place at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Tuesday.
Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona – Match preview and team news
Atletico Madrid is gearing up for their Champions League quarter-final second leg as they welcome Barcelona to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Tuesday.
Diego Simeone’s men head into this match with a 2-goal advantage from the first leg and will want to knock out Barcelona in the quarter finals just like they did in 2013/14 and 2015/16.
Diego Simeone faces a delicate balancing act with his squad. Having rotated heavily during their recent La Liga outing against Sevilla, the Rojiblancos are banking on fresh legs to defend their 2-0 aggregate lead.
The team received a significant boost with Jan Oblak and Johnny Cardoso returning to full training, both of whom are expected to start.
However, the defensive unit remains a concern; David Hancko, Jose Gimenez, and Pablo Barrios are all major doubts and will undergo late fitness tests.
Additionally, Marc Pubill is unavailable due to suspension. Simeone is expected to deploy a 4-4-2 formation, likely pairing Antoine Griezmann with Julian Alvarez up front, while leaning on the leadership of Koke in the midfield alongwith Cardoso or Marcos Llorente to stifle Barcelona’s buildup play.
Hansi Flick must navigate this must-win fixture without several players. Raphinha and Andreas Christensen remain sidelined with injuries.
The defensive situation is further complicated by the suspension of Pau Cubarsi following his red card in the first leg, forcing a reshuffle that will likely see Eric Garcia partner Ronald Araujo in central defence.
On a more positive note, Marc Bernal and Gerard Martin are pushing for late inclusion pending final medical clearance. To overturn the two-goal deficit, Flick is expected to go all-out with an attacking 4-3-3 setup.
This strategy relies heavily on the creative spark of Lamine Yamal while Robert Lewandowski and Marcus Rashford will look to exploit Atletico’s defence, as the Blaugrana search for an early goal to ignite a comeback.
Atletico Madrid enters this clash with inconsistent form, showing a mix of resilient European performances and domestic stumbles. While they secured a massive 2-0 UCL quarter-final first-leg win at the Spotify Camp Nou, they followed it with a disappointing 1-2 loss to Sevilla in La Liga which was their third consecutive league defeat.
Barcelona remains in excellent domestic form, sitting nine points clear at the top of La Liga and on a seven-match winning streak after a recent 4-1 thrashing of Espanyol. Despite this momentum, their recent 0-2 home defeat to Atletico in the first leg of the Champions League has put their European ambitions in serious jeopardy.
Atletico Madrid: Oblak; Molina, Lenglet, Le Normand, Ruggeri; Simeone, Cardoso, Koke, Lookman; Griezmann, Alvarez
Barcelona: J. Garcia; Kounde, Araujo, E. Garcia, Cancelo; Pedri, De Jong; Yamal, Lopez, Rashford; Lewandowski
In the UK, tune into TNT Sports 1 for live coverage of the match. Stream it via the HBO Max app or website, which includes TNT Sports for subscribers.
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The match is scheduled for Tuesday at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.
Atletico Madrid has a 2-goal advantage from the first leg of the quarter-finals.
Atletico Madrid has previously knocked out Barcelona in the Champions League during the 2013/14 and 2015/16 seasons.
Diego Simeone is the coach of Atletico Madrid as they prepare for the match.
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