It’s all to play for in Germany on Tuesday night as Borussia Dortmund welcome Atletico Madrid to Signal Iduna Park for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.
Atleti hold a slender 2-1 advantage heading into the return fixture, but it initially looked as if Diego Simeone’s side would blow away BVB in the Spanish capital. The hosts raced into a 2-0 lead, but a resilient Dortmund fought back in the second half, halving the deficit, and they were perhaps unfortunate not to draw level in the closing stages.
The visitors’ indifferent away record this season will doubtlessly concern Simeone, with Atletico winning just a third of their La Liga fixtures on the road.
BVB have endured similar consistency woes this term, but they’ll fancy their chances of progressing into the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2013 off the back of their second-half showing last weekend.
Here’s 90min’s preview of Tuesday’s quarter-final second leg.
Borussia Dortmund vs Atletico Madrid H2H Record (All Games)
Current Form (all competitions)
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Borussia Dortmund |
Atletico Madrid |
|---|---|
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Borussia Monchengladbach 1-2 Borussia Dortmund – 13/04/24 |
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Girona – 13/04/24 |
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Atletico Madrid 2-1 Borussia Dortmund – 10/04/24 |
Atletico Madrid 2-1 Borussia Dortmund – 10/04/24 |
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Borussia Dortmund 0-1 Stuttgart – 06/04/24 |
Villarreal 1-2 Atletico Madrid – 01/04/24 |
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Bayern Munich 0-2 Borussia Dortmund – 30/03/24 |
Atletico Madrid 0-3 Barcelona – 17/03/24 |
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Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Eintracht Frankfurt – 17/03/24 |
Atletico Madrid 2-1 (3-2P) Inter – 13/03/24 |
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Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
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United Kingdom |
TNT Sports 2, discovery+ App, discovery+ |
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United States |
Paramount+ |
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Canada |
DAZN |
Sebastien Haller, whose goal in Madrid handed Dortmund more than a glimmer of hope, is set to miss the return leg with an ankle injury.
Jadon Sancho and Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, both of whom were bright last week, are also doubts. The former, though, is expected to be fit to start.
Ramy Bensebaini remains out of action for the hosts, while Julian Brandt should come into the side after making an impact off the bench in the first leg.
Dortmund predicted lineup vs Atletico (4-2-3-1): Kobel; Ryerson, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen; Can, Sabitzer; Sancho, Brandt, Adeyemi; Fullkrug.
First leg goalscorer Samuel Lino is suspended for Tuesday’s clash in Dortmund. The Brazilian’s absence will be hard-felt by the visitors as there’s not an obvious wing-back replacement.
Nahuel Molina could switch flanks, or Simeone could opt for the more defensive Reinildo.
The visitors are also without Vitolo and Marcos Paulo. Memphis Depay remains a doubt with a muscle injury.
Atletico predicted lineup vs Dortmund (3-5-2): Oblak; Witsel, Gimenez, Hermoso; Molina, Llorente, Koke, De Paul, Reinildo; Griezmann, Morata.
Signal Iduna Park has hardly been a fortress for Dortmund this season, but it’ll be rocking on Tuesday night. BVB have a good chance of progressing, with the reward for the victor being a fairly winnable semi-final tie.
Simeone would’ve preferred a healthier buffer heading into the second leg, and it’ll be interesting to see whether he reverts to vintage Atleti ideals on Tuesday. Their retreat last week got Dortmund back into the game.
It’s hard to see either side containing the other for the duration, and we should once again see goals at both ends. Atleti’s away record is a concern, but there’s just something about this Simeone-led outfit which suggests they’re going to enjoy a deep European run.
Prediction: Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Atletico Madrid
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