MADRID —
With Real Madrid on the rise and Atlético de Madrid middling, the rivals from the capital will meet in a semi-final on Wednesday, the first of three duels between the clubs in less than a month.
After the Super Cup, Madrid and Atlético will meet again on January 18 in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey, and then on February 4 at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium in their second Spanish League match this season .
“The calendar is what it is and we have had this happen three times!” said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. “I don’t like meeting Atleti, because it’s always complicated, but they will think the same. We are two very strong teams and finding each other is hard.”
Madrid has just won its last five games in all competitions, remaining undefeated in 19 consecutive games. The merengue team’s only defeat this season was against Atlético in the League, a 3-1 loss at the Metropolitano stadium, where the only match for the Copa del Rey will be played next week.
It is also the venue where Atlético has had 20 victories in all competitions to equal a club record, a streak that came to an end with the 3-3 draw against Getafe in December.
“It excites us, it excites us and it generates expectations,” said Diego Simeone, Atlético’s Argentine coach about crossing paths with Madrid.
Regarding the previous victory in the League three months ago, Simeone pointed out that “in that game there were Madrid players who could not be there and who tomorrow will raise their structure as a team.”
“It was another game, at another time… We will play the game that we believe we have to play at this moment this season,” he added.
Simeone’s team entered an excellent dynamic after defeating Madrid at home, qualifying for the round of 16 of the Champions League and hovering at the top of the League. But they have stumbled recently, with two wins in their last five games in all competitions.
One of the two recent defeats was in the visit to Girona, the team that is in second place at the midpoint of the season. The 4-3 setback left Atlético in fifth place, out of the Champions League qualification spots. They are 10 points behind the leader Madrid.
Atlético and Madrid animated the 2020 final, one that the meringues won on penalties. That was the first edition of the Super Cup played in Saudi Arabia after the signing of a lucrative multi-year contract for the clubs and the Royal Spanish Football Federation.
With a new “final four” format, the Super Cup brings together the top two of the Spanish League last season and the two finalists of the Copa del Rey.
The other semifinal will be played on Saturday between Barcelona and Osasuna, which lost to Madrid in the final of the last Copa del Rey.
Antoine Griezmann will take to the field on Wednesday looking to break the tie with Luis Aragonés as Atlético’s top scorers, currently with 173 goals.
2024-01-09 22:50:45
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