Manchester City defeated Atletico at home thanks to a 70th-minute goal from Kevin De Bruyne. In a very cagey match, City struggled to break Atletico Madrid down.
Although City are in command of the tie, Atletico Madrid can still topple them in Spain next week.
Clash of Styles
Just like in any other game, two tacticians displayed their strength. Manchester City have built a reputation of being the one of best-attacking teams in Europe.
They have been successful with their approach, raking in trophies and awards by season – well, so have Atletico Madrid. We know Diego Simeone for the way he sets up his team. For Simeone, Tuesday’s match was almost perfect.
On Tuesday, Manchester City had one of their lowest expected goals (xG) stats of the season. Atletico’s system worked, but Manchester City were also rewarded for their patience.
How Atletico Can Beat Manchester City
Atletico defended stoutly against Manchester City, but their counter-attack plan was very poor.
The best way to beat Manchester City still involves defending low and hitting them hard on the counterattack. Atletico’s counterattacks were poor, so they couldn’t hurt Manchester City. The likes of Joao Felix and Antoine Griezmann will need to be more direct and decisive against Manchester City in the second leg.
It worked for Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace this season. Diego Simeone’s men just need to be more decisive whenever they attack the English champions.
Related Posts
Athletico doesn’t need to press the panic button, over years they have shown to be one of the hardest team to be knocked out of the champions league. All they have to do is try as much as possible to stretch city while playing on the counter. With city defenders playing close to the midfield athletico just need to hit city on the break and make sure they take their chances.
Well diego simeon is a great coach and so is pep
The second leg would really be tough
But i know man city will qualify