The last Liga matches at the Calderón are arriving and Atlético look forward to keep their place on the table facing Espanyol at their home. The team will try to regain their spot after Sevilla caught up with a win.
Kick off at Power8 Stadium is set for 20:45 CET.
Cholo’s mens’ success at the Champions League was set last Tuesday. With Saúl scoring on 26” (and after Vardy from Leicester scoring on 61”), Atleti was left with an aggregate score of 2-1 and a place in the Semifinals.
The Catalan club is currently ninth in the table, having a balanced number of wins, draws and losses through the season. Their coach, Quique Sánchez Flores, stated that Atleti was on a different position back when they visited Madrid. Now, “[Atlético] has regained their strongest defensive, they are more secure…”
That match at the Calderón back in December finished on a 0-0 draw. The teams’ defenses were playing at their best.
Both Simeone and Sánchez believe the teams are similar and it will be a demanding game. Simeone praised the former Atleti coach, who brought the team to win the Europa League and European Super Cup in 2010. Moreover, Sánchez Flores believes that “Simeone has succeeded in impregnating his style of playing” adding that the Colchoneros have played at their best in the last five years.
The squad looks familiar for this match. Juanfran currently suffers from a grade II muscle injury on the right thigh. Filipe suffers from a hand injury, although he has been called this time by Cholo and if positioned on the eleven, he will play with a splint.
Considering Sevilla’s win against Granada gave them three points enough catch up with the Rojiblancos, a win against the ‘pericos’ is vital.
? #ATMFLASH ?
? @Simeone: "@RCDEspanyol works very well as a group and has destabilising football players"#EspanyolAtleti #GoAtleti pic.twitter.com/bhZAyJ15eS— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) April 21, 2017
Simeone will look for the proper line-up, seeing that Sánchez Flores gave a challenging position for them to score any goals in December. “We will look for the players that are more prepared so they can respond to what the match needs” he said.
Squad list for tonight:
Goalkeepers: Oblak and Moyá.
Defenders: Godín, Filipe, Savic, Lucas and Giménez.
Midfielders: Tiago, Koke, Saúl, Carrasco, Gabi, Thomas and Gaitán.
Forwards: Griezmann, Torres, Gameiro and Correa.