Manchester City will be the big favorite in the semi-finals of the Football Champions League against Atletico Madrid. Great coaching personalities Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone will face each other after a six-year hiatus.
When Atletico Madrid plays, an emotional passage takes the field. A head coach who has risen to a cult reputation Diego Simeone is involved in the heartbeat of the game with all his heart and lets it show.
The TV viewer could enjoy the matches just by watching Simeone. He doesn’t stay put for a moment, but lives the game on the edge of the field and shares instructions non-stop. When the final whistle rings, he rushes directly to the locker room according to his trademark.
After winning the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Simeone got the wrath of Manchester United supporters on his way to the booth and a liter of drinks. The look did not vibrate, even inside the miller. On Tuesday, the Argentine will return with his team to Manchester, where the challenge is even greater. Manchester City is perhaps the biggest winner favorite in the entire Champions League.
The feeling was strongly present over the weekend in the Spanish league when Atletico faced Alaves at home. Simeone’s recently deceased father was honored in a quiet moment that made Simeone in tears. A 4-1 win lifted Atletico third past Seville and gave the team peace before a new trip to Manchester.
In eleven years, Simeone has returned Atletico to the ranks of European giants and won the Spanish championship twice, the latter last spring. Perhaps he is still best known for his masterpieces in the Champions League.
– Diego Simeone is the champion in the playoffs. Within these matches, many small matches are played, which he manages perfectly, Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola praised the weekend.
In recent years, Simeone has specialized in bullying just English teams, so the starting point for Tuesday night is teasing. Two years ago, Atletico muted Liverpool and marched on with stunning counter-goals, despite having two full matches and one overtime as the host.
Something similar has to happen against the City for Atletico to have its chance. This time, Atletico will have to start away.
– We must prepare to suffer against them and survive in the second part, Atletico Argentine striker Angel Correa described the upcoming challenge for the Spaniard To Marca magazine (go to another service).
Old mistakes as a nuisance to Guardiola
The victory of the Champions League is for both Simeon and Guardiola to some level of obsession. Simeone have lost the final twice to Real Madrid, while Guardiola has failed in Manchester City year after year. Now below is last year’s bitter final loss to Chelsea.
In recent years, the City has suffered surprise losses and fallen to Lyon, Tottenham and Monaco, for example. Atletico has its potential, but how many times can Guardiola succumb to the same mistakes with his world’s largest player material?
It is good to remember that Guardiola has won the Champions League twice in Barcelona. It has only been 11 years since the previous one, although Guardiola’s teams have been among the biggest winners every year.
Simeon already has experience hitting Guardiola. Atletico knocked out the Bayern Munich semi-finals coached by Guardiola in 2016. It’s still the only time the duo have faced each other in the Champions League.
– Their similarity is that they always want to win. Another more through ball control and counter-attacks by our coach, Captain Atletico Koke described to the Spaniard AS magazine (you move to another service).
– I am lucky to have a certain way of playing with me and on the national team Luis Enriquen a different way of coaching, closer to Guardiola’s. I can adapt to both and enjoy both.
Koke was already involved in the coaches’ previous meeting in the spring of 2016. According to him, there is no longer anything to be drawn from that time for the new struggle. The experience of Tuesday’s match on Tuesday is not surprising.
– Simeone hasn’t given us the keys to break City yet. We need to be strong in changing situations and attack carefully. When that’s not possible, we also need to be able to exploit and ball control to get them tired, Koke summed up.
The encounter between City and Atletico is easily approached as a confrontation between the offensive and defensive team. Nicknamed “Cholo,” Simeone has often expressed that he doesn’t consider him defensive. Koke is on the same lines with his coach about playing for his team.
– I think we have really offensive players. The fact that we defend well does not make us a defensive team. We only attack the premises in a different way. What does defensive even mean? After all, everyone has to defend in today’s football. Otherwise, you can’t win, Koke said.
Guardiola also took a stand on the eve of the match against Atletico and Simeone’s alleged defensive play. He thinks the whole discussion of teams ’opposing ways to play football is silly.
– There is a misunderstanding to think of Simeone as defending the game. It’s a lot more offensive than people think. He doesn’t want to take risks in opening the game, but in the attacking third they have tremendous quality. They know in every situation in the opponent’s half of the field how they want to play, Guardiola said According to the BBC (switching to another service).
Atletico last made it into the top four in the Champions League five years ago. The team has been revamped and is no longer quite at the mid-2010s level, but Koke believes in the potential of red and white as an underdog. The attackers’ mood is right, for Joao Felix and Luis Suarez hit the weekend both twice and Antoine Griezmannkin has gained momentum again after injury.
– I feel that we are often underestimated. We play against a big favorite, but we don’t feel fear. We’re Atletico, and we’re trying to drop them, Koke said.
Both teams have injury concerns in central defense. Atletico has to do without Jose Maria Gimenez, who was injured in a weekend league match. City, on the other hand, is missing Ruben Diaswho do not have time to recover from their hind leg injury in time.
Champions League Semifinals, Part 1:
Manchester City – Atletico Madrid
Benfica-Liverpool
Villarreal – Bayern Munich
Chelsea-Real Madrid
The other parts will be played next week.