📊 Simeone's record: unbeaten at home in Champions knockouts

📊 Simeone's record: unbeaten at home in Champions knockouts

Atlético de Madrid have turned their stadium into almost forbidden territory for visiting teams in the Champions League.

Under the management of Diego Pablo Simeone, the rojiblanco side boasts a flawless record in knockout ties at home, racking up 11 wins and 6 draws.

This unbeaten run under "Cholo" is no coincidence, but rather the reflection of a defensive and competitive identity that grows even stronger in front of their own fans.

No European rival has managed to come away victorious from a knockout tie at Atlético’s home ground since the Argentine coach took charge.

The last defeat, almost 30 years ago

To find Atlético’s last home defeat in a knockout stage of Europe’s top competition, you have to go all the way back to 1997.

📸 Ben Radford

On that occasion, Ajax Amsterdam managed to win 2-3 after extra time at the Vicente Calderón, with a last-minute goal from Babangida—a wound that now seems to have fully healed after decades of solidity.

Only one slip-up... and in the Europa League

Even in other European competitions such as the Europa League, defeats have been few and far between, with the loss to Rubin Kazan in 2013 being the exception that proves the rule. The stats are clear: home advantage is the Madrid club’s greatest asset in Europe.