19 February 2019
Massiliano Allegri’s men will head to the Spanish capital this evening, where they will finalise their preparation for their Last 16 Champions League clash. It will be the first time the Bianconeri will take to the field of Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, after having faced Los Colchoneros in October 2014 at the iconic, Vincente Calderon.
Tomorrow evening’s fixture will see a number of interesting battles take place. Here are a few player-vs-player battles that could take place.
Over the last few seasons Jan Oblak has been asserting himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the game. In total, he has conceded 34 goals while keeping in goal on 40 occasions in the tournament. Wojciech Szczesny, meanwhile, has been Allegri’s number one starter in goal since Gianluigi Buffon’s exit from the club, and he will be hoping to take his side to the finals of the competition. In the Champions League, the stopper has conceded 49 times in 39 appearances.
These two men sit in the heart of defence for their respective teams, and both sport the captain’s armband with pride and fearlessness. Both skippers, who have featured in a Champions League final each, also took to the field when the two teams met in the group stages of the 2014/15 season. They will be eager to spur their respective teams to a victory while assisting in keeping a clean sheet for their respective shot-stoppers.
Saul Niguez is no stranger to the Champions League, having featured in the final (which Atletico lost to Madrid) and two semi-finals in back to back seasons. It was his goal against Bayern Munich that helped send Atletico to the final of the 2015/16 campaign. On the Bianconeri side of things, Miralem Pjanic knows how to win Champions League matches, having featured in two seperate semi-finals, including the final against Real Madrid in Cardiff. He’s also scored on 11 occasions during his Champions League career. The midfield duo will look to dictate play for their team on the night.
These two attackers know each other well, having faced each other on numerous occasions, including the 2016 Champions League final. In total, Cristiano Ronaldo has scored against Atletico 22 times in 31 games. This season, CR7 has scored one and bagged two assists in this campaign, while Antoine Griezmann has four goals and the same number of assists to his name this season. The Frenchman has also scored 22 goals in the tournament in 52 outings.
