Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea: Can visitors overcome hoodoo against Spanish sides?

Topics: TV Schedules, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, UEFA Champions League

Familiar opponents Atletico Madrid and Chelsea will be battling for a first leg advantage when they meet for part one of their round of 16 tie on Tuesday, February 23rd.

Preview: Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea

Currently on top of the La Liga table, Atletico Madrid are hoping to win their first league crown since the 2013/2014 season. However, Los Rojiblancos have suffered a hiccup lately over the span of just three days. In two back to back meetings with Levante, Diego Simeone's men failed to win either, first stumbling to a one-all draw followed by a 2-0 loss on home turf last weekend.

As such, it goes without saying that Simeone will hope his team can get it together as they prepare to welcome familiar foes Chelsea for the first leg of their round of 16 clash. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, Atleti won't be able to play their match at home, and instead have to travel over to Romania. They will, however, be still billed as the "home" side, with the return leg scheduled to take place in London next month. And the hosts will be hoping that their excellent record against English teams - with wins in nine of their last 11 knockout ties - will prove to be a big advantage when the Blues arrive for part one of their two-legged knockout tussle.

Overall, despite being on top of the league table, Atletico have won just two of their last five league fixtures. Their Champions League group stage campaign didn't go as swimmingly as they'd wanted as they won just two of their six games. In addition, they ended up suffering their joint-worst defeat on matchday one when they were humiliated in a 4-0 mauling by reigning champs Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.

Despite this, the ambitious capital side have turned their home base into a fortress, where Simeone has never lost a knockout match since he took over (nine wins, four draws). In addition, Atleti have conceded just once in their last 12 home European matches, and have lost just one of their last 12 home meetings with English teams (to none other than upcoming opponents Chelsea).

However, as noted before, Atleti won't get to play this match at their actual home ground in Madrid, and rather have to go to Romania where the sides will meet on neutral turf. It will be interesting to see if that has any sort of impact on them; they have come out on top in their prior two meetings with English teams at a neutral base.

Meanwhile, Chelsea will certainly hope to cause their opponents major problems as they aim to get past the round of 16 for the first time since the 2013/2014 season. Last year saw them become another victim of Bayern's ruthless machine as they were dumped out of the competition following a 7-1 aggregate defeat. This time around, they've again qualified for the round of 16 after finishing first in their quartet, but despite having a good away record against Spanish teams (with eight wins and four draws from their last 13), that doesn't translate into when they get to the knockout phase.

In fact, the Blues have lost five of their last 11 knockout matches versus Spanish teams, and it's a record that new coach Thomas Tuchel will certainly have in mind. The former PSG boss has overseen a revival at Stamford Brige since he took charge last month, and Chelsea come into this match unbeaten in their last seven ties across all comps.

However, Tuchel will be very disappointed with his team's performance during their 1-1 draw with a Southampton side who were on a six-match losing streak in the league. Those dropped points have cost Chelsea a top four berth following West Ham's win over Tottenham, and following this match, the Blues will face a tricky test against Manchester United.

That is a major distraction, certainly, but Tuchel will naturally hope his troops will be able to remain focused and get the job done here first.

Team news: Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea

Atletico Madrid: The hosts will have to make do without the services of Jose Gimenez, Yannick Carrasco, and Sime Vrsaljko due to injuries, while Hector Herrera has tested positive for COVID-19.

Chelsea: Veteran defender Thiago Silva will miss this tie after not being passed fit for the Southampton clash last weekend. However, both Christian Pulisic and Kai Havertz are part of the traveling party for this upcoming tie.

Match facts: Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea

This will be the seventh meeting between Atletico Madrid and Chelsea, and the first since the 2017/2018 UCL group stage
So far, Atleti's record is W2 D2 L2
Los Rojiblancos have a strong record in European competition against English sides, with wins in nine of their last 11 knockout matches
Atletico Madrid have lost just one of their last 12 home matches to English sides...
...that was to Chelsea during the 2017/2018 group stage, and to date, that remains their only loss in their last 29 European home matches (W22 D6)
They've also reached at least the quarter-finals in five of their last eight Champions League tournaments
Diego Simeone has NEVER lost a home European knockout game in charge of Atletico so far (W9 D4)
And under him, Los Rojiblancos have conceded just ONE goal so far in 12 home UCL ties (knockout stages)
Atletico have lost only seven of their last 37 European matches (W21 D9)
Chelsea are in the round of 16 for the sixth time in their last eight UCL competitions
They also have a strong away record against Spanish teams - with just one loss in their last 13 (W8 D4)
However, the Blues haven't gotten further than this juncture since 2013/2014
And they have won just two of their 11 away knockout games against Spanish teams in UEFA competition (D4 L5)