Overview
Atletico Madrid is preparing for their seventh UEFA Champions League semi-final in history, and also the first since the 2016-2017 season, after defeating Barcelona in the quarter-finals.
Under coach Diego Simeone, the Madrid team is famous for its pragmatic playing style, but this season has shown a clear change. Atletico scored 34 goals in the Champions League - the highest number in club history, surpassing the record of 26 goals in the 2013-2014 season. Notably, they have scored 8 goals (two legs) against Tottenham Hotspur in the round of 16.
Atletico's form is also very stable when scoring in 12 consecutive matches in all competitions. The 3-2 victory over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga last weekend helped them end a 4-match losing streak and consolidate their position in the top 4.
However, a big challenge is waiting for them named Arsenal. Atletico once lost heavily 0-4 to this opponent at the Emirates in the group stage. In addition, their record against English teams is not very impressive when they only won 2 in the last 12 matches in UEFA tournaments.
However, Simeone's team still has grounds to be optimistic. They have won 11/15 of the most recent knockout matches against England representatives, including three times in the semi-finals. At home, Atletico has also only lost 2 out of 18 recent receptions of English teams (9 wins, 7 draws).
In the opposite direction, Arsenal is writing history when they reached the Champions League semi-finals for the first time for two consecutive seasons and the fourth time in club history. Mikel Arteta's team defeated Sporting Lisbon with a total score of 1-0 in the quarter-finals.
The Gunners" made a strong impression when they won all of the group stage (8/8 matches) and are still the only unbeaten team in the Champions League this season (10 wins, 2 draws). More broadly, they have only lost 2 in the last 22 matches in this arena.
Although their form in the Premier League has somewhat slowed down, Arsenal have returned in time with a 1-0 victory over Newcastle United, thereby maintaining a 3-point gap with Manchester City in the championship race.
Besides the goal of conquering domestic titles after 22 years of waiting, Arsenal also crave to win the Champions League for the first time. The recent head-to-head record brings great confidence as they have won all seven recent encounters with La Liga teams in this tournament.
Notably, Arsenal has only lost 1 of their last 11 away matches in the Champions League (9 wins, 1 draw). However, unhappy memories still remain when they were eliminated by Atletico in the semi-finals of the 2017-2018 Europa League with a total score of 1-2.
Personnel situation
Atletico Madrid will not have the services of Pablo Barrios (hamstring injury) and Jose Gimenez (muscle injury). Meanwhile, Ademola Lookman and David Hancko are still uncertain to play and will be assessed before kick-off.
Julian Alvarez has a slight physical problem and will not play in the weekend match, but the Argentine striker affirmed that he is fully ready. Alvarez is likely to start, combined with Antoine Griezmann or Alexander Sorloth.
In midfield, one of the three names Johnny Cardoso, Rodrigo Mendoza or Marcos Llorente may be chosen to replace Barrios, pairing with Koke. Llorente may also take on the role of right-back, but Nahuel Molina is still the priority option.
On Arsenal's side, Kai Havertz (muscle injury) has joined the absent list along with Mikel Merino (foot) and Jurrien Timber (ankle).
Eberechi Eze also has physical problems, but Arteta confirms he is ready to play. Riccardo Calafiori may return after normal training, while Martin Zubimendi is also fit after illness.
In attack, Arteta is likely to consider Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard for the left flank, while Viktor Gyokeres is ready to replace Havertz in the center forward position.
Expected lineup:
Atletico Madrid: Oblak, Molina, Le Normand, Lenglet, Ruggeri, Simeone, Koke, Cardoso, Gonzalez, Griezmann, Alvarez.
Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie, Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice, Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
The match between Atletico Madrid and Arsenal takes place at 2:00 AM on April 30 (Vietnam time).
