Atletico Madrid won 2-1 against Dortmund in the first leg. However, a one-goal lead is not a safe advantage. The German football representative still has a chance to turn the situation around when playing at home.
Dortmund vs Atletico Madrid Prediction
In the first leg, Atletico Madrid dominated the visitors in the first half of the match. If they had taken advantage of their opponents' mistakes, Diego Simeone's team could have taken a 3-4 goal lead.
However, the home side's wastefulness gave Dortmund a chance to fight back. The German side pulled one back late in the second half and almost went home with a draw if Julian Brandt hadn't hit the crossbar.
Atletico Madrid continue to rely on the mettle of their veterans.
This season, Atletico Madrid have not played well in the domestic arena. However, they have achieved stable performance in the Champions League. Experienced pillars such as Koke, Axel Witsel, Stefan Savic, Antoine Griezmann and Alvaro Morata... have shown their bravery and tenacity in the cup arena.
Atletico Madrid need to continue to develop this in the second leg, especially in the finishing phase to quickly decide the match. If they let the home team play with excitement, the Spanish team will be at an even greater disadvantage as physical strength is not a strong point of the squad with many players over 30 years old.
Coach Diego Simeone is unlikely to make many changes to the squad. These are also the best players he has. The five-man defense will help Atletico Madrid play solidly and take advantage of the sharpness of Morata and Griezmann in counter-attacks.
Dortmund were forced to play aggressively when they were behind. Coach Edin Terzic relied on his young and fast players to attack first. The high tempo of the first half was in Dortmund's favor. They could have thought of winning by 2 goals or more to avoid extra time.
However, Dortmund's problem lies in the central defender duo Nico Schlotterbeck and Matt Hummels. Schlotterbeck lacks international experience, while Hummels is old and slow.
The centre-back pairing will be challenged when the team pushes forward, with the likes of Griezmann and Morata punishing any mistakes made by Dortmund's defenders.
Dortmund vs Atletico Madrid form
In their last five games, Edin Terzic's side have won three and lost two. Dortmund head into tonight's game after beating Borussia Monchengladbach last weekend.
Atletico Madrid defeated Girona phenomenon at the weekend. This was the third consecutive win for coach Diego Simeone and his team. In the last 5 matches, the La Liga team lost only 1 match, the rest were 4 wins.
Expected lineup Dortmund vs Atletico Madrid
Dortmund: Kobel; Ryerson, Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen; Sabitzer, Can, Brandt; Sancho, Fullkrug, Malen
Atletico Madrid: Oblak; Witsel, Gimenez, Azpilicueta; Molina, Llorente, Koke, De Paul, Lino; Griezmann, Morata
Score prediction: Dortmund 1-1 Atletico Madrid
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