Who: Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona
Contents: Champions League quarter-finals, second leg
Location: Metropolitano Stadium, Madrid, Spain
Date and time: Tuesday 9pm (19:00 GMT)
How to follow: Get everything ready on Al Jazeera Sports from 16:00 GMT ahead of the live text commentary stream.
Spanish football clubs Atletico Madrid and Barcelona will meet for the third time in 10 days, but crucially, a place in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) semi-finals is at stake.
Atlético may be far behind their Catalan opponents in the race for the La Liga title, but they go into Tuesday’s match as strong favorites thanks to their first-leg win against Barcelona 10-a-side at Camp Nou and their strong home run in Europe this season.
Current La Liga champions Barcelona need to do everything possible to keep alive their dream of winning their sixth UCL trophy and first since the 2014-2015 season.
Here’s what you need to know before getting a knockout tie.
What happened in the first leg at Camp Nou?
A tense first leg encounter saw Atletico take a valuable 2-0 lead, with Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth scoring in each half.
The La Liga leaders were in the lead in the first half, but Pau Kvarsi was sent off for bringing down Atletico’s Giuliano Simeone inside the goal.
Álvarez scored a free-kick just before half-time, and in the 70th minute Sorloz doubled the advantage, giving Atlético a great chance to advance to the semi-finals.
What did you think of Barcelona’s La Liga performance over the weekend?
Barcelona took a big step toward retaining the La Liga title with a 4-1 win over crosstown rivals Espanyol on Saturday, leaving them nine points behind second-place rivals Real Madrid.
Ferran Torres scored twice, both assisted by Lamine Yamal, first with a header from a corner kick in the 10th minute, and in the 25th minute he doubled the lead after parrying another Yamal pass.
Espanyol got one point back in the 56th minute when Pol Lozano took a shot from a rebound in front of the box. But Yamal regained control in the 87th minute with a quick counterattack, with Marcus Rashford adding a fourth goal from a cross from Frenkie de Jong.
Barça now have 79 points with seven games left.
How did Atlético perform in La Liga over the weekend?
After Atlético lost 2-1, manager Diego Simeone made a major rotation to keep his squad fresh for the match against Sevilla.
Akole Adams put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot and 20-year-old Atlético substitute defender Javier Bonnar equalized before Nemanja Guderi struck again for Sevilla before the interval.
Atlético are fourth in the league with 57 points, four points behind third-placed Villarreal.
Has Atlético ever won the UEFA Champions League trophy?
Diego Simeone’s team has never won this competition.
They also reached the final in 2014 and 2016, but lost to city rivals Real both times.
How did Barcelona reach the UCL quarter-finals?
Barcelona advanced to the quarter-finals with an 8-3 aggregate victory over Newcastle United.
Barça defeated the Premier League side 7-2 at the Camp Nou, with much to come in the second leg, where five different players scored.
How did Atlético Madrid reach the UCL quarter-finals?
Despite losing 3-2 in the second leg in North London, Atlético Madrid withstood a ferocious fightback from Tottenham Hotspur to emerge victorious 7-5 on aggregate.
Scored four goals in the first 22 minutes in the first leg at home, 5-2, Simeone’s side were reeling from the onslaught, but goals from Julián Álvarez and David Hanko eventually gave them some breathing room.
Have Atlético and Barcelona ever played against each other in the finals?
The two teams have met twice in the knockout stages of the Champions League, both times in the quarter-finals, with Atlético reaching the final each season in 2014 and 2016. Atletico also played the second leg at home.
What are the managers saying?
Diego Simeone: “We know who we are going to play and we know how strong they are, but we also know what our goal is: to progress.”
Hansi Flick: “We have quality. We have players who can change this. But of course we have to fight. We have to focus on the magic.”
Barcelona vs. Atletico Madrid: Head-to-head
The two clubs have met 251 times so far. Barcelona won 115 of those matches, Atlético won 79 and 57 were draws.
Last 10 encounters:
April 8: Barcelona 0-2 Atletico (Champions League quarter-final first leg)
April 4: Atletico 1-2 Barcelona (La Liga)
March 3: Barcelona 3-0 Atlético (Copa del Rey semi-final)
February 12: Atletico 4-0 Barcelona (Copa del Rey semi-final)
December 2: Barcelona 3-1 Atlético (La Liga)
April 2, 2025: Atletico 0-1 Barcelona (Copa del Rey semi-final)
March 16, 2025: Atlético 2-4 Barcelona (La Liga)
February 25, 2025: Barcelona 4-4 Atlético (Copa del Rey semi-final)
December 21, 2024: Barcelona 1-2 Atlético (La Liga)
April 17, 2024: Atletico 0-3 Barcelona (La Liga)
Atlético team news
Marc Poubil is suspended after receiving three yellow cards, while Jose Jimenez, Pablo Barrios and David Hanko are doubtful to play due to injuries.
Expected starting lineup:
Musso (goalkeeper); Molina, Le Normand, Lenglet, Ruggeri. Llorente, moss. Simeone, Griezmann, Lookmann. alvarez
barcelona team news
Defender Kvarsi was suspended after receiving a red card in the first leg, and will be replaced by Ronald Araujo, who played on the back line against Espanyol at the weekend.
Marc Bernal, Rafinha and Andreas Christensen are absent due to injury.
Expected starting lineup:
João Garcia (goalkeeper); Kunde, Araujo, Martin, Cancelo. Eric Garcia, Pedri. Yamal, Fermin, Rashford. lewandowski
