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Atletico Madrid will be aiming to overturn a one goal deficit when they host Manchester City at the Wanda Metropolitano for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday night. Kevin de Bruyne’s 70th minute strike proved the difference between the two sides at Etihad stadium last week. Pep Guardiola’s side is certainly in control of the tie and the winner will take on either Real Madrid or Chelsea in the final four.
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In the mood for Madrid! ???#ManCity | #UCL pic.twitter.com/yhDtpnrVjK
— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 12, 2022
Atletico Madrid came out with a clear thought process to sit back and defend and hit the opposition on the counter, and they almost executed the first part of the plan with perfection if not for De Bruyne’s brilliance.
Diego Simeone’s 5-5-0 formation prevented City from running away with the tie in the first leg. Meanwhile Phil Foden’s introduction sparked new life into Man City, with the English youngster threading a pass through for De Bruyne to slot home past Jan Oblak into the net.
A one goal lead in the Champions League is far from comfortable and that too against the La Liga champions, who are known for their never-say-die attitude. Meanwhile Simeone’s side didn’t have the ideal preparation for the european tie having lost 1-0 to Mallorca in the domestic fixture on Saturday.
On the other hand, Man City were held to a 2-2 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League top of the table fixture on Sunday. De Bruyne’s opener was canceled out by Diogo Jota before Gabriel Jesus restored Man City’s lead but Sadio Mane leveled the score to share the points. Despite not being able to kill the game in the first half, Guardiola’s side can secure the League title if they don’t drop any more points between now and the finale.
Man City are unbeaten in their last 12 away games, winning ten of them, while they have conceded just one goal in their last 630 minutes of domestic football. Atletico certainly go into the tie as underdogs but they will not be low on confidence and will fancy their chances as Guardiola’s side has a history of faltering in the crucial knockout ties in the European stage.
Simeone will welcome back Yannick Carrasco after suspension. Hector Herrera remains sidelined along with centre-back Jose Gimenez. Otherwise Simeone has a well-stocked squad at his disposal.
Man City also have just two injury concerns, with Ruben Dias still struggling with his hamstring problem and Cole Palmer is out with an ankle problem. Most importantly defender Kyle Walker is back from a European suspension.
Atletico Madrid possible line-up: Oblak, Savic, Felipe, Reinildo, Vrsaljko, Llorente, Koke, Lemar, Lodi, Griezmann, Felix
Manchester City possible line-up: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Laporte, Ake, Gundogan, Rodri, De Bruyne, Mahrez, Foden, Sterling
The Champions League quarter-final fixture between Atletico Madrid and Manchester City will take place at the Wanda Metropolitano and it will kick-off at 12:30 am IST on Thursday, April 14.
The match will be live streamed on the SonyLIV app and website, and the JioTV mobile app. Meanwhile football fans in India can also enjoy the action on TV networks, as the competition is telecasted on the Sony Ten network.
