Match Preview: Atlético Madrid v FC Barcelona

Match Preview: Atlético Madrid v FC Barcelona

Barça take on Diego Simeone's side in the second leg of their Spanish Cup quarter-final in the Vicente Calderón

It’s all or nothing at the Vicente Calderón tonight, as Barça travel to the Spanish capital to face Atlético Madrid in the second leg of their Cup quarter-final. Luis Enrique’s men take a slim advantage into the game from last week’s first leg following Leo Messi's late winner in the 1-0 victory, but the boss is determined they won’t sit back on it and play for a draw.

Team news

Luis Enrique welcomes back Jérémy Mathieu after injury, whilst for Atlético, Godín is suspended and Tiago and Koke are both unfit and miss out in Simeone’s 18-man squad.

View from the dugout

Speaking in his pre-game press conference on Tuesday, Barça coach Luis Enrique warned: “Atlético will be much stronger in their own stadium, with their own fans behind them." Atlético coach Diego Simeone believes intensity will be the key in the second leg: “We have to live every minute as if it is the last and that will take us closer to our objective.”

Form guide

Barça’s stunning 0-6 demolition of Elche on Sunday was as clear a sign as possible that the team are on an upward curve, as well as confirming the growing sharpness of the Messi-Neymar partnership up front. Atlético stay in third place – 3 points behind Barça following their 3-1 win over Rayo on Sunday - they have now lost just once in their 17 games at the Calderón this season.

Ones to watch

Neymar’s two goals in Elche took him to 19 for the season in all competitions and no doubt he’ll be keen to add to those on Wednesday at a ground where he scored his first goal for the Club. Antoine Griezmann’s brace against Rayo at the weekend took him to 13 for the season and Simeone will be looking to his pace to unsettle the Barça backline.

History

This is the third meeting between the two teams this season – all three of them this month – but the first at the Vicente Calderón, where the two sides drew 0-0 in the league last season. Atlético won 1-0 in the second leg at home in the quarter-final to dump Barça out 2-1 on aggregate in last season's Champions League.

Coverage

The game is being shown live on Canal + in Spain, by Sky Sports in the UK and beIN Sports in the US. Remember, you can hear live commentary in English on R@dio Barça—the radio link will appear on the homepage just before kick off—and receive live Twitter updates as the events unfold by following @fcbarcelona. For global TV coverage, check out where and when to watch the game.

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