TEAMS LINE UP
Atletico Madrid: Moya, Vrsaljko, Godin, Savic, Luis, Gabi, Koke, Juanfran, Saul, Carrasco, Griezmann
Subs: Moreira, Lucas, Gaitan, Keidi, Correa, Torres, Gameiro
Barcelona: Cillessen,
Roberto, Pique, Umtiti, Alba, Mascherano, Rakitic, Gomes, Messi, Suarez, Neymar.
Subs: Masip, Denis, Arda, Rafinha, Alcacer, Vidal, Mathieu
Key Events
- Big names find the mark in Copa del Rey - 5 things we learned
- Full-time: Atletico 1-2 Barcelona
- Neymar booked, will miss second leg
- GOAL! ATLETICO 1-0 Barca (Griezmann)
- Half-time: Atletico 0-2 Barca - Catalans firmly in the driving seat
5. Savic no match for Gimenez
Atletico’s success under Diego Simeone has been built on the foundation of a solid defensive partnership led by Godin, writes Kieran Canning.
For
the vast majority of Atletico’s run to the Champions League final last
season his experience fused with the youth and pace of Jose Maria
Gimenez was the perfect match.
Yet, Simeone blamed Gimenez’s
indiscipline on nearly costing his side in the Champions League
semi-final against Bayern Munich and has tended to go with Savic this
season leading to a far leakier Atletico defence.
Gimenez had only
just won his place back in the team when he left the field in tears
having torn a thigh muscle at Alaves on Saturday.
Once again with Savic back alongside him, even the usually unflappable Godin looked out of sorts.
4. Griezmann loyalty to be tested
Once again when Atletico needed a goal, Griezmann was there to get it.
Yet,
on top of the move to a new stadium, Atletico’s collapse throughout the
course of the season hints at big problems to come, writes Kieran Canning.
Simeone’s time at a club is numbered, even if he does stick to his
promise and stay for at least one season at the new Wanda Metropolitano.
Griezmann
had committed to stay with Simeone until 2018 too, but with Premier
League clubs queueing up to pay his 100m euro buyout clause and multiply
his wages, the Frenchman’s loyalty will be fully tested come the
summer.
3. Messi long ranger danger
Of all of Messi’s array of talents, power isn’t one that automatically springs to mind, writes Kieran Canning.
Yet,
the Argentine’s blast was the eighth goal he has scored this season
from outside the box this season - double any other player in Spain.
Atletico
have suffered at the hands of Messi more than most. He’s scored more at
the Calderon than any ground away from the Camp Nou and only Sevilla
have conceded more to the five-time World Player of the Year.
2. Atletico’s season hanging by a thread
A
50th and final season at the Vicente Calderon was meant to inspire
Atletico to great things with a squad packed full of young talent and
having just missed out on both La Liga and Champions League last season.
Instead,
their grand goodbye is petering out with a whimper unless they can save
their season when the Champions League returns later this month, writes Kieran Canning.
Already
10 points behind Real Madrid having played a game more in La Liga,
Atletico face a fight just to avoid the embarrassment of baptising a new
67,000 capacity out of town stadium without Champions League football
next season.
Unless they can produce a Camp Nou miracle, another
chance of a trophy is gone leaving the one they still haven’t won in
their history.
1. Suarez Atletico's scourge once more
In
the season before Barca signed Luis Suarez, their failure to beat
Atletico in six meetings cost them the La Liga title and dumped them out
the Champions League.
In the now 10 meetings since, they have
only lost once and Suarez has scored seven times in his nine appearances
against Los Rojiblancos, writes Kieran Canning.
None
of them were as good as his opener as he galloped half the length of
the pitch solo, leaving international teammate Diego Godin and Stefan
Savic trailing in his wake, before prodding inches inside of Miguel
Angel Moya’s far post for his 22nd goal of the season.
Big names find the mark in Copa del Rey - 5 things we learned
Two
moments of magic from Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi swung the balance of
a fifth two-legged tie between these two sides in the past four seasons
firmly in Barca’s favour inside the first-half of the first-leg, writes Kieran Canning.
Atletico
still have 90 minutes to turn around a 2-1 deficit, but that is praying
for a miracle when God is playing for the other side.
Messi was dazzling again. A sensational piledriver that smashed the
inside of the post on its way in to give Barca a 2-0 lead just the icing
on a display that made him look he was playing a different sport.
Suarez
opened the scoring in just as impressive fashion as he charged from the
halfway line through the middle of Atletico’s defence to inflict the
first wound of a damaging night for the hosts.
