Atletico Madrid take on Man City in the Champions League this week and Pep Guardiola seems to be worried about a very distinct nuisance.
Everyone has been building up this game as Man City’s attack vs Atleti’s defence but according to the Man City manager, their Spanish opponents are actually an offensive side.
Diego Simeone’s Atleti is known to play deadpan defensive football(especially in the big matches) but Guardiola has suggested that the Spanish side takes very calculated risks.
“There is a misconception about the way he (Diego Simeone) plays,” said Pep in his press conference. “It’s more offensive than people believe. He doesn’t want to take a risk in the build-up but they are very good in the final third.
“They are so competitive. It depends on the movement of the game and they know how to play at the exact moment.
“The moment of the game, winning, losing, last minute, early minutes, beginning of the start of second half – in these situations, they are very good.
“They want to avoid risk in neutral areas. They are aggressive and when they win the ball, they play. Maybe I am wrong but what I have seen, they don’t close up from the back.
𝗦𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗗 🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/S2AwgFXXNW
— Atlético de Madrid (@Atleti) April 4, 2022
“Maybe at times, but not at the beginning. They come for you. They don’t close up. If they can, they will press.
“This has been going on for a while. When Luis Enrique played them at Barca, they pressed.
“If they do the process well, you can beat them. But maybe I am wrong. You see them every week. That is my sensations, and my feeling. And when you look at the quality of the players, they can do it. They will press and then in other moments switch to different formations.
“They are a very rich team tactically. What can we do to annoy them? That’s what we will do tomorrow and next week.”
Will Atletico Madrid throw the kitchen sink at Man City?
Atletico Madrid are a very apt and precise counter-attacking team but there’s no way they will look to be adventurous at the Etihad on Tuesday.
200 – @Sterling7 registered his 71st and 72nd assists for @ManCity yesterday. In addition to his 128 goals in a City shirt, Sterling has now scored or assisted exactly 200 goals for the club in all competitions, the most of any City player since he joined in 2015. Esteem. pic.twitter.com/BZLS0sEiQp
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 3, 2022
Simeone doesn’t care what others think about his style so the manager is going to ask his team to sit deep and frustrate the Man City players. Obviously, they will be a threat on counter-attacks but the Atletico Madrid will be more than happy if he can pick up a draw in the first leg.
Guardiola is a manager who is concerned about how his team plays but Simeone just focuses on results. Atletico Madrid will set the same way they did against Manchester United and they will hope that the Man City defence slips up at least once in the 90 minutes.
Atletico Madrid have scored 11 goals in their previous five outings but there’s no way they will want to take the initiative on Tuesday night.
