Atlético Madrid travel to Seville’s Estadio La Cartuja on Thursday for the Copa del Rey quarter-finals against Real Betis. The match will start at 9pm local time and will be the last quarter-final to kick off in this year’s cup competition.
los rojiblancos We are probably at the lowest point of our current campaign. Atlético are 10 points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona and must face Club Brugge in the Champions League play-offs in a few weeks to stay in the competition. The domestic cup competition is realistically Atleti’s best chance of winning silver this season, so it’s understandable that they’ll be nervous going into this high-pressure Copa del Rey match. But can anyone confidently guarantee that Atleti can secure a result away at this stage of the season?
Looking at the situation through a more positive lens, this is a point where Simeone has historically been successful in turning things around. This moment could be the catalyst for his breakthrough in the Copa. This competition is certainly within Atleti’s reach, especially after Real Madrid’s shock defeat to Albacete (who themselves lost to Barça on Tuesday).
Real Betis enters this match having won consecutive wins over Feyenoord in the Europa League and Valencia in La Liga. of verdiblancos In the last tournament, they defeated Elche 2-1 and advanced to the top eight in the cup competition.
Overall it was a very solid season for Betis. Manuel Pellegrini’s side are currently fifth in La Liga and finished fourth in the Europa League. They are aiming to reach the Copa del Rey semi-finals for the first time since winning the competition in 2022.
It would be a great achievement for Pellegrini’s side to reach the last four despite being on the injured list. Betis will be without Isco, Hector Bellerin, Sofian Amrabat, Cucho Hernández and Giovani Lo Celso, while Junior Firpo and Rodrigo Riquelme are said to be doubtful. Replacing Hernández, Betis’ top scorer, will be particularly difficult and he will undoubtedly be unavailable on Thursday night.
Good luck if you’re attending the game, as lots of rain and wind are expected and temperatures are expected to be in the 50s.
Before we get into the exciting new additions, let’s start with an injury update.
around Pedro Frana of Cadena SERAntoine Griezmann and Giuliano Simeone are slowly but surely returning to full fitness, but their availability on Thursday remains uncertain. Giuliano is more likely to start than Griezmann, with the Argentine appearing to have fully recovered from the illness he contracted just before the match between Bodo and Grimmt.
Pablo Barrios was rumored to have suffered a minor injury last Sunday, which meant he was substituted after playing 50 minutes. However, Barrios has taken part in training in recent days and the Spain international should be available from the start for Thursday’s game.
Alexander Soros remains in concussion protocol and his ability to return remains uncertain after suffering a severe blow to the head against Levante at the weekend. The Norwegian’s injury came at a particularly bad time for the player. los rojiblancosthey became increasingly reliant on him to get goals.
Now for the fun part: adding.
Atlético Madrid will welcome three new players to the team sheet on Monday: Ademola Lookman from Atalanta, Rodri Mendoza from Elche and Obed Vargas from Seattle Sounders. With Lookman’s arrival, Atlético finally have a true dribbler who is a legitimate threat on the left. Mendoza and Vargas help strengthen Barrios’ midfield, which is in desperate need of support. Vargas in particular represents both an interesting project and a feel-good story. During the Club World Cup summer, it was revealed that the Mexican midfielder is a lifelong Atlético supporter and considers the red and white club to be his “dream club”.
Players who will not join Atlético include Al Hilal’s Marcos Leonardo and Atalanta’s Ederson. Leonardo appeared to be all set on a loan deal with an option to buy, but negotiations broke down at the last minute. As for Ederson, Atalanta did not want to allow the two players to leave for Spain, but Atlético pushed to the end for the Brazilian. The club may sign him again during the summer.
Possible 11: Musso. Llorente, Jimenez, Pubil, Hanko. moss, barrios, giuliano, baena. Lookman, Alvarez.
Predicted scoreline: Giuliano and Julián Álvarez for Atleti, goals from Anthony for Betis 2-1.
Atlético Madrid holds an all-time record against Real Betis in all competitions with 75 wins, 33 losses, and 34 losses. Atleti have a record of 7 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw against away opponents in their last 10 matches. heliopolitanos.
The last time the two clubs met was in October against La Cartuja, with Atleti winning (surprisingly, I think) with goals from Giuliano and Alex Baena.
The last meeting between the two clubs in the Copa del Rey dates back to the 2012/2013 season, when the two clubs met in the quarter-final round of that season. Atlético won 3-1 on aggregate with goals from Radamel Falcao, Filipe Luis and Diego Costa. of Colchoneros They won the Cup that season, their most recent victory to date.
Notable players who represented both clubs
Club legends Luis Aragonés, Roberto Solozábal, Rodrigo Riquelme, Johnny Cardoso, Antonio Adan and Juanito.