Atletico Madrid welcome Club Brugge to the Metropolitano Stadium for their Champions League knockout round play-off second leg tomorrow.
The two sides played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in Bruges, leaving the tie finely balanced.
Match preview
Atletico will aim to carry the momentum from Saturday’s 4-2 La Liga win over Espanyol into this encounter.
The Rojiblancos have a strong home record in the Champions League, winning three and losing one of their four home games during the group phase.
Brugge dominated possession and pressed aggressively in the first leg, although Diego Simeone’s side were sharp in attack.
The hosts are expected to play better in Tuesday’s showdown, but need to be wary of Brugge’s rapid attack.
They defeated OH Leuven 2-1 in the Belgian Pro League on Saturday, providing momentum ahead of this clash.
Brugge impressed in the first leg with their intricate passing and decisiveness in the final third, but were let down by poor defending.
The visitors have struggled away from home in the competition, winning just once and losing three times, casting doubt over their ability to replicate their first-leg display.
Team news
Atletico will be without Pablo Barrios and Nicolas Gonzalez.
Brugge have been handed an injury boost with the return of Carlos Forbs. However, Dani van den Heuvel and Lynnt Audoor are doubtful, while Raphael Onyedika is suspended.
Predicted line-ups
Atletico Madrid (4-3-3): Jan Oblak, Nahuel Molina, Marc Pubill, David Hancko, Matteo Ruggeri, Marcos Llorente, Koke, Antoine Griezmann, Giuliano Simeone, Ademola Lookman, Julian Alvarez.
Club Brugge (4-3-3): Simon Mignolet, Kyriani Sabbe, Brandon Mechele, Joel Ordonez, Joaquin Seys, Aleksandar Stankovic, Hans Vanaken, Hugo Vetlesen, Mamadou Diakhon, Christos Tzolis, Nicolo Tresoldi.
Prediction
We predict a 3-2 win for Atleti.
Stats from whoscored.com & sofascore.com.
