Atletico and Real Madrid get set to tango again as the UEFA Champions League returns

The quarter-final will likely be a feisty one as is normally the case when these two teams meet

When Karl-Heinz Riedle picked out the ball that read ‘Atletico de Madrid’ to be Real Madrid’s opponents in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League 2014/15, a clandestine hush descended upon all those assembled in the room. It was the one tie that drew the most reception, after the other three ties had brought about a simple shrugging of the shoulders and all but a small hint of excitement.

Club Atletico de Madrid vs Real Madrid CF – this was the tie that stood out.

Now, this wasn’t because it was going to be a repeat of last year’s final, in which Real finally broke their 12-year-long European hoodoo to claim La Decima, or the fact that this was going to be a Madrid derby. Much of it was simply down to what the ‘other team from Madrid’ had morphed into over the last couple of years. If there was one team that Real genuinely wanted to avoid in these quarter-finals, it would likely have been their cross-town rivals.

That’s what Diego Simeone has turned Atletico Madrid into – a gutsy, self-effacing, energy-filled, giant-killing, apple-cart-upsetting, and couldn’t-care-less-for-reputations of a football team hell bent on being a serious thorn in the flesh of teams like Real Madrid. Of course, when it comes to Real, there’s always some special love; tough love that is.

About a year ago, during one of the draws for the knockout stages of last year’s Champions League, Real’s Sergio Ramos was posed a question by an elderly gentleman in attendance that day – “What are we going to do about this Atletico Madrid?”

Real hadn’t drawn Atletico back then, yet the man in the crowd still seemed to be more perturbed about the Colchoneros’ rise in status. He asked the question with a worried smile on his face and Ramos responded with a gentle laugh of his own, but didn’t really have anything to say. After a few moments, he ended up talking about how they were a very good team and how Real would have to be at the top of their game to take them down.

Perhaps, that man felt something coming, a foretelling of the future, one where Atletico had Real in a steadfast headlock, rendering Los Blancos incapable of throwing a good punch. And there was a good degree of pain that he felt as he asked that question.

The kind of pain that Real have felt at the hands of Atletico this whole season.

In six matches played between the Madrid teams, Real have won a grand total of zero – nada, zilch. At every tournament they’ve met, they’ve been upstaged by the men in red, white and blue leaving their fans and themselves in bewilderment at what possibly they have to do to overturn this rather distasteful trend.

The six meetings between Atletico and Real Madrid this season [Courtesy: Whoscored]

Real have been owned by Atletico this season. Not only have the defending La Liga champions won four of the six games, they have scored 12 goals to Real’s meagre four. Atletico have won their last three home matches against Real in all competitions. And they’ve achieved that without having conceded a goal, most recently on February 7th when Atletico inflicted a crushing 4-0 defeat to hand Real their worst loss of the season.

On their quest for a back-to-back triumph in Europe, Real travel to the Vicente Calderon once again for the first of their two-legged quarter-final clash against those plucky, stubborn neighbours of theirs.

Atletico’s struggle for consistency and Real’s season of swings

With the momentum of their European glory spurring them on and buoyed by the recruitments of World Cup stars James Rodriguez and Toni Kroos, Real enjoyed a fantastic first-half of the season, setting records and leaving the competition in their trail. Then came the fall.

Injuries, fatigue, lack of confidence and bickering have caused much consternation at the Santiago Bernabeu with the white handkerchiefs out in full force on a few occasions including their most recent Champions League tussle, a 2-3 loss to Schalke on home turf in the previous round.

Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo (in white) walks away dejected during his team’s 4-0 loss to Atletico on February 7, 2015

Since that disastrous little phase however, where they ended up giving up their position at the head of La Liga too, Real have managed to steady the ship and get back to winning ways.

Atletico will be a major test, the first big one since the El Clasico clash last month, for Carlo Ancelotti’s men.

Speaking of Atletico, while their domestic form has been inconsistent, they have shown no signs of letting up in the Champions League. At the weekend, they were held to a 2-2 draw by Malaga, but go into the game against Real undefeated in 19 of their last 21 matches in the Champions League (including qualifiers). They’ve also kept a clean sheet in six of their last seven matches in the competition.

What’s changed from last year’s final?

Much water has passed under the bridge since that famous night in Lisbon in May last year. That night Atletico were seconds away from a league and Champions League double, only for Sergio Ramos to drive a dagger into their hearts when he put his head to the ball to draw level for Real.

Atletico lost a few regulars to offers from other teams over the summer and had to make new recruitments. What has not changed though are the men in the dugout. That giant, imposing figure of German Adrian Burgos still patrols the sidelines, never reluctant to indulge in some sandbagging if need be with officials to get his point across.

And of course, there’s the manager, Simeone, clad in all-black, with his hair gelled together almost in an Italian mobster sort of fashion, who still sends out his troops with much of the same gusto and relentless energy that they displayed en route to winning the title last season.

Sergio Ramos (in white) after he scored the late equalizer in injury time to rescue Real Madrid in last year’s final

The difference this year has been that Atletico haven’t been able to mount quite such a sustained challenge and will likely surrender their Spanish crown barring a meltdown from both Barcelona and Real. They are in a battle for third with Valencia.

Real too have the same man in charge (a sacking after having delivered La Decima would have probably ripped the heart out of football). Ancelotti and Real’s season has been a tale of two halves – a first that saw a dominant, rampant run where almost every opponent was put to the sword and a second that has seen missteps galore along with misfiring and missing players.

Yet, they’re still in position to take advantage of a slip-up from Barcelona in La Liga and despite being given a real scare by Schalke in the previous round, managed to drag their butts across the finish line to be here in the final eight in Europe.

Despite all that though, when it comes to the Atletico-Real dynamic, the situation isn’t too different. They know how to beat Barca, heck they even know how to beat those Bavarians from Munich, yet these stubborn neighbours have had their number so far.

The good news for them however is that they don’t have to!

The reinforcements are here for Real

From the 4-0 drubbing to now, much has gone right for Real. From an injury standpoint, their squad has been replenished as neither of James Rodriguez, Marcelo and Luka Modric were available for that game. Their returns have provided Real with some much needed impetus, especially that of Modric. They will also have their first-choice back-line available with only Pepe playing the last game. Jese is also fully fit and ready to impact the game from the bench.

The heroic Ramos is injury-free and is all geared up to take on this familiar foe. Ronaldo is back to scoring in gluts and looks to be having fun again (ok, except maybe when Bale scores a goal). And through much of the recent hard times, Karim Benzema has played off the charts, and has been rather underappreciated for his industry that has served as the glue to keeping that feared forward line ticking.

Luka Modric, Gareth Bale, Marcelo and James Rodriguez of Real Madrid all missed Real’s last match versus Atletico

Things are looking up for Real, at least as far as the ammunition that they go into Tuesday’s match with is concerned. And as mentioned earlier, they don’t have to beat Atletico to progress.

This is the wonderful world of the Champions League where two-legged encounters are the norm and one does not have to get a result to beat a team, but merely emerge victorious on aggregate with away goals being equivalent to gold.

So, this tie can end 3-3 after a 2-2 draw at the Calderon and a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu and Real are through. Or a 1-1 at the Calderon and 0-0 at the Bernabeu, and Real are through. They don’t need to necessarily score more goals than Atletico over two legs, just match them.

The Main Men

Mario Mandzukic, the man brought in to replace Diego Costa, will miss the first leg and his absence means some of the aerial prowess lost in that department. Despite that, Atletico will still have the services of Antoine Griezmann, one of their players of the season. The Frenchman’s been on a hot run of late scoring four goals in his last three games and will be key to Atletico’s success in the forward area. He’s great at holding up the ball and is an excellent finisher.

Antoine Griezmann (left) will likely partner Fernando Torres up front once again for Atletico

For Real, much of their problems have risen from their midfield getting overrun by opponents. With Modric back in that pivotal role, partnering Rodriguez and Kroos in the middle, Real can exert much better control and keep Atletico’s hard-pressing midfielders in check.

The first leg being at the Vicente Calderon is a bit of an advantage for Simeone’s team. If all goes to plan, they will go into the second leg knowing exactly what they need and every away goal will shift the goalposts some more for Real. That will add to the already sizable pressure on the champions as they look to keep hold of their crown. That’s why Atletico are very tough to beat over two legs as opposed to a one-off final.

Ronaldo and co. will be polishing their striking boots in right earnest, looking to set the record straight against Atletico after a rocky road so far this season. For their part, Atletico will look to keep their boots where they currently are, firmly on Real’s throats, to not allow them an inch of breathing room and continue their recent dominance of the Madrid derby.

The Vicente Calderon will be quite the cauldron of simmering football heat come tonight.