Defending champions Real Madrid are all set to square up against Atletico Madrid in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League.
The Bernabeu will play host to the first leg of the round of 16 tie between the two rivals from Madrid. Tuesday’s clash will be the 10th meeting between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. Carlo Ancelotti’s team have the upper hand in terms of head-to-head record, but Diego Simeone’s men will certainly give Los Blancos a run for their money.
The UEFA Champions League holders suffered a blow in their last outing against Real Betis, which has seen them slip down to third in La Liga. While it was a massive defeat in the context of the league title race, they will have to keep it aside and focus on taking on their biggest rivals in Europe.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid have been unbeaten in their last ten games across competitions, and they climbed up to second in La Liga following Real Madrid’s recent defeat. They recently secured a hard-fought 4-4 draw against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey and backed it up with a 1-0 win over Athletic Club in the league.
The Madrid rivals squared up against each other in La Liga last month. While Los Blancos dominated the proceedings, they could only manage to get a point out of it. As far as the UEFA Champions League is concerned, the two teams last met during the 2016/17 semi-finals, where the team in white won 4-2 on aggregate.
While Simeone’s team have won two out of the nine meetings between the two teams, they have never knocked the Merengues out of the Champions League. So, the away side would be eager to make it happen this time around. The Hard Tackle takes a close look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Real Madrid
Jude Bellingham is suspended for the first leg after having picked up a milestone yellow against Manchester City in the knockout round second leg. He has joined Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal and Dani Ceballos on the sidelines.
Carlo Ancelotti will stick to the 4-4-2 formation, where Thibaut Courtois will be in goal. While he will be tempted to have Federico Valverde as the right-back, he should back Lucas Vazquez to do the job. Meanwhile, Ferland Mendy will feature on the left flank.
David Alaba did start in their last outing, but he is far from his best. As a result, Raul Asencio should partner Antonio Rudiger at the heart of the defence. Rodrygo and Brahim Diaz should provide the width, while Valverde should partner Aurelien Tchouameni in a more central role.
Luka Modric will drop to the bench, but he will certainly play a part in the game. Finally, Vinicius Junior should partner with Kylian Mbappe in the strike pairing.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Courtois; Vazquez, Rudiger, Asencio, Mendy; Diaz, Valverde, Tchouameni, Rodrygo; Vinicius Junior, Mbappe
Atletico Madrid
The visitors will be without the services of Cesar Azpilicueta and Koke. Apart from the duo, everyone else should be available for selection. Diego Simeone’s team will also line up in a 4-4-2 formation.
Atletico Madrid will have Jan Oblak in goal against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday, while the back four will be made up of Nahuel Molina, Robin Le Normand, Jose Gimenez and Javi Galan.
Marcos Llorente and Samuel Lino will feature out wide on the flanks in midfield, while Rodrigo De Paul should partner Pablo Barrios in a more central role. The duo will look to ensure the home team doesn’t dictate the pace of the game. In the final third of the pitch, Julian Alvarez should continue to pair up with Antoine Griezmann.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Oblak; Molina, Le Normand, Gimenez, Galan; Llorente, De Paul, Barrios, Lino; Griezmann, Alvarez
Key Stats
- Real Madrid have won 116 out of the 238 matches played between the two teams, as opposed to Atletico Madrid’s 59 victories.
- Tuesday’s clash is all set to be the tenth match between the two Madrid rivals in the UEFA Champions League, the joint-highest number of games played between two teams from the same nation.
- Both teams have faced each other in five knockout ties in Europe, and Los Blancos have progressed on all five occasions.
- Atletico Madrid have two wins out of the nine UEFA Champions League meetings between the two teams.
- The two teams played out a 1-1 draw in La Liga last month.
Player to Watch
Kylian Mbappe
While it was certainly a slow start for the French international at his new club, he has certainly gained top form as we head into the business end of the season. Mbappe scored four goals in the knockout tie against Manchester City and having contributed towards 31 goals so far, he will certainly be the biggest threat for Atletico Madrid.
Prediction
Real Madrid 3-1 Atletico Madrid
Real Madrid will look to bounce back from their recent league setback and assert their dominance in Europe once again when they go against their city rivals. Despite Jude Bellingham’s absence, they still have enough firepower to get the job done.
While Diego Simeone’s side have been resilient and are on a strong unbeaten run, their defensive vulnerabilities could be exposed by Ancelotti’s team. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for Carlo Ancelotti and his charges in the first leg.
