Who: Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid
What: Champions League quarterfinal, first leg
Where: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain
When: Wednesday at 9pm (19:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 16:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
The players of Spanish rivals Barcelona and Atletico might be sick of the sight of each other by next week’s second leg.
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Their Champions League doubleheader will complete a barrage of five meetings between the teams in the space of two months, culminating in three matches in 10 days.
On Saturday, Barcelona came from behind to beat Atletico 2-1 on the road to strengthen their hold on the Spanish league lead.
In February, they met in the Copa del Rey with each winning big at home and Atletico advancing on aggregate.
They have met twice in the Champions League knockout stages, both times at the quarterfinal stage, with Atletico going through in 2014 and 2016 on their run to the final each season. Atletico played the second leg at home on those occasions too.
Barca move clear in La Liga with win over Atleti
Robert Lewandowski shouldered home a dramatic late winner for Barcelona as they edged Atletico Madrid 2-1 on Saturday to move seven points clear at the top of La Liga after Real Madrid slipped up by losing at Mallorca.
Marcus Rashford pulled Barca level after Giuliano Simeone opened the scoring for the hosts in the first half.
Atletico midfielder Nico Gonzalez was sent off just before the break, and his team dug deep with 10 men to try to avoid defeat, which they almost managed.
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Atletico have lost three in a row in all tournaments and stayed one point behind third-placed Villarreal, who lost 1-0 at Girona on Monday.
With little left to play for in La Liga, Atletico coach Diego Simeone rotated heavily with Wednesday’s visit to Camp Nou in mind, and both sides struggled at times.
Barca boss Hansi Flick said both teams would be better in the Champions League quarterfinal first leg.
“There is the Champions League, where every player has 5 to 10 percent more to give,” Flick said.
Simeone said his side played “a good game”, adding: “We have to focus on the Champions League game now.”
How did Barcelona reach the quarterfinals?
Barcelona stormed into the quarterfinals with a thumping 7-2 victory over Newcastle United at Camp Nou on March 18, sealing an emphatic 8-3 aggregate triumph.
Raphinha opened the scoring for Barcelona in the sixth minute after Fermin Lopez led a swift counterattack, but Anthony Elanga levelled nine minutes later from Lewis Hall’s cross. Marc Bernal restored Barca’s lead from a Raphinha free kick before Elanga struck again in the 28th minute after Lamine Yamal failed to clear.
Yamal made amends by converting a spot kick deep into first-half added time after VAR spotted Kieran Trippier’s foul on Raphinha inside the box, and Barca came storming back from the break to score four goals in the second half through Fermin, a brace from Robert Lewandowski and another Raphinha strike.
How did Atletico Madrid reach the quarterfinals?
Atletico Madrid withstood a rousing Tottenham Hotspur fightback to advance 7-5 on aggregate despite a 3-2 second-leg loss in North London.
Simeone’s side, who scored four times in the opening 22 minutes in the 5-2 first-leg home romp, wobbled under a home onslaught, but goals by Julian Alvarez and David Hancko ultimately gave them breathing space.
Views from both camps
Flick said last month that Wednesday’s face-off looks like a “very difficult” game.
“We have to go step by step, match by match. That’s what we did last season and will do again,” he said.
Meanwhile, Barcelona midfielder Dani Olmo said the tie was “all or nothing” for his side.
“We have the quality, and we can do it if we’re at our best,” Olmo said. “We’re motivated. We remember what happened [in the Copa del Rey], and we can’t afford to fail.”
Simeone said Barcelona are the best attacking team in Europe.
“The prospect of facing them in the quarterfinals is a high-level challenge that will demand that same level from us,” he said.
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Meanwhile, Atleti forward Ademola Lookman said he expected a “special, special game against another tough opponent”.
“We need to be ready for it, and we’ll prepare in the right way. Let’s take it as it comes.”
The two clubs have faced each other on 250 occasions. Barcelona have won 115 of those games, Atletico have won 78 and 57 ended as draws.
Last 10 encounters:
- Saturday: Atletico 1-2 Barcelona (La Liga)
- March 3: Barcelona 3-0 Atletico (Copa del Rey semifinal)
- February 12: Atletico 4-0 Barcelona (Copa del Rey semifinal)
- December 2: Barcelona 3-1 Atletico (La Liga)
- April 2, 2025: Atletico 0-1 Barcelona (Copa del Rey semifinal)
- March 16, 2025: Atletico 2-4 Barcelona (La Liga)
- February 25, 2025: Barcelona 4-4 Atletico (Copa del Rey semifinal)
- December 21, 2024: Barcelona 1-2 Atletico (La Liga)
- April 17, 2024: Atletico 0-3 Barcelona (La Liga)
- December 3, 2023: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Barcelona’s team news
Raphinha, Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Andreas Christensen are all unavailable due to injury.
However, Ronald Araujo has been deemed fit to play despite being forced off against Atletico over the weekend.
Predicted starting XI:
Joan Garcia (goalkeeper); Kounde, Cubarsi, Martin, Cancelo; Eric Garcia, Pedri; Yamal, Fermin, Rashford; Lewandowski
Atletico’s team news
Pablo Barrios remains unavailable due to a thigh issue, and Jose Gimenez and Johnny Cardoso are major doubts as they struggle to recover from injuries.
Marc Pubil, Jan Oblak and Rodrigo Mendoza are back in training after injuries and could feature.
Predicted starting XI:
Oblak (goalkeeper); Llorente, Le Normand, Hancko, Ruggeri; Koke, Baena; Simeone, Griezmann, Lookman; Alvarez
