Atletico Madrid travel to the Signal Iduna Park to face Borussia Dortmund for the second league of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.
A place in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals will be on the line when Borussia Dortmund and Atletico Madrid lock horns at the Signal Iduna Park on Tuesday night.
Los Rojiblancos managed to pick up a 2-1 at home in the first leg, and they will be the favourite to go through to the next round. Atletico Madrid have the experience and the quality to grind out results at this stage of the tournament, and Diego Simeone will look to set up his side to get the job done.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund bounced back from two consecutive defeats with a win over Borussia Monchengladbach at the weekend, and it will be interesting to see if they can produce a comeback against Atletico Madrid at home.
Just like the first leg, this is likely to be a close contest, and it remains to be seen who comes out on top. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News and Tactics
Borussia Dortmund
Ramy Bensebaini misses out with an MCL injury, while Sebastien Haller is sidelined with an ankle injury. Borussia Dortmund are likely to shape up in a 4-3-3 formation against Atletico Madrid, with Gregor Kobel in goal.
Julian Ryerson and Ian Maatsen will be deployed as the full-backs, and they will look to protect the central defenders and help out during counter-attacking opportunities. Mats Hummels will start alongside Nico Schlotterbeck at the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Emre Can will start as the defensive midfielder, and he will look to break up opposition attacks. Marcel Sabitzer and Julian Brandt will add creativity and drive to the midfield. Finally, Niclas Fullkrug will lead the line for Borussia Dortmund, with Donyell Malen and Jadon Sancho on either flank.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Kobel; Ryerson, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen; Sabitzer, Can, Brandt; Sancho, Fullkrug, Malen
Atletico Madrid
Memphis Depay is the only absentee for the away side because of a muscle injury. Atletico Madrid will shape up in a 3-5-2 formation, with Jan Oblak in goal. In the back three, Axel Witsel will start alongside Jose Maria Gimenez and Cesar Azpilicueta.
Nahuel Molina and Samuel Lino will start as the wing-backs. They will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. In the middle of the park, Marcos Llorente will start alongside Koke and Rodrigo De Paul. Llorente and Koke will add work-rate and drive to the midfield here. De Paul will look to help out defensively. In the attack, Antoine Griezmann will lead the line alongside Alvaro Morata.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Oblak; Witsel, Gimenez, Azpilicueta; Molina, Llorente, Koke, De Paul, Lino; Griezmann, Morata
Key Stats
- Atletico Madrid have won four of the last five matches in all competitions.
- Borussia Dortmund have won three of the last five matches in all competitions.
- Atletico Madrid have won their last two matches against Borussia Dortmund. Nine goals have been scored in the last three meetings between these two sides.
- Atletico Madrid have conceded in each of their last six matches. Meanwhile, they have scored 88 goals across all competitions in 2023/24, their most prolific season under Diego Simeone since 2017/18 (96).
- Borussia Dortmund are unbeaten in their last nine UEFA Champions League home games (W5 D4).
Player to Watch
Antoine Griezmann
The French international is our key player to watch out for this week. He has 21 goals and ten assists in all competitions. He will look to open up the Borussia Dortmund defence with his creativity in the final third.
Griezmann will look to add to his goalscoring tally in the Champions League as well. The experienced attacker has found the back of the net six times in nine Champions League outings this season and will be eager to add to that tally.
Prediction
Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Atletico Madrid
The German outfit did well in the first leg, and they will look to put on an impressive performance at home as well. However, Atletico Madrid have the experience of getting through important games during crucial stages of the season, and they should be able to grind out another narrow win here.
Atletico Madrid has the better team out of the two, and they should be able to book their place in the semifinals of the competition with an away win. The Hard Tackle predicts another narrow 2-1 win for Diego Simeone and his charges.
