Atletico Madrid will begin their 2022/23 UEFA Champions League campaign this Wednesday when they welcome FC Porto Metropolitano.
Venue: Metropolitano Stadium (Madrid)
Key Statistics
Atletico Madrid have kept two clean sheets in their last four games.
They have failed to score in five of their last eight UCL home ties.
FC Porto have only won one of their previous five away games in the competition (D2, L2).
They have just seven wins from 25 (D5, L13) contests against Spanish sides in the UCL.
Only Real Madrid and Barcelona (26) have featured in more UCL group stage campaigns than the visitors.
Head to head
Atletico Madrid have a slight edge over FC Porto and have won three out of the eight matches played between the two teams. FC Porto have managed two victories against Atletico Madrid and will look to level the scales on Wednesday.
Latest performances in all competitions
Atletico Madrid: D-W-L-W-W
Porto: W-L-W-W-W
Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid will look to get their Champions League group-stage campaign off to the best possible start when they welcome Porto to Wanda Metropolitano on Wednesday night.
Diego Simeone’s side come into this match off the back of a disappointing 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in La Liga on Saturday. The result continued a poor start to their season that has seen them win just two of their opening four league games (D1, L1).
The hosts are now in their eleventh year of Simeone’s reign at Atletico and are playing in their tenth-successive UEFA Champions League (UCL) campaign.
After being put in the group of death last year alongside Liverpool, AC Milan and Porto, they have been given a more favourable draw in Group B this season with Porto, Club Brugge and Bayer Leverkusen representing lesser opponents.
They will come into this group hoping to finish on top and they attempt to lay their hands on the UCL trophy after coming agonisingly close in the 2015/16 season.
But with their form dropping rapidly since last season when they failed at the quarter-final stage in the UCL against Manchester City while also failing to mount a La Liga title challenge, finishing a distant third, they have a long way to go to match their impressive run to the final in 2016.
A big factor for their failure in recent months has largely been down to their erstwhile string defence. Last season Atlético slumped to tenth-best in terms of league clean sheets. They come into this tie on the back of a 2-0 loss to Villarreal in what was their last home game at the Metropolitano.
However, they will want to regain the defensive prowess in Europe that saw them keep five successive knockout stage home shutouts in their triumphant 2017/18 UEFA Europa League campaign.
Possible Atletico Madrid starting line-up
Ivo Grbic; Reinildo, Axel Witsel, Jose Gimenez; Nahuel Molina, Yannick Carrasco, Koke, Marcos Llorente, Thomas Lemar; Joao Felix, Alvaro Morata.
Injured: Jan Oblak, Stefan Savic, Sergio Reguilon
Doubtful: None
Suspended: Felipe
FC Porto
Portuguese champions and 2004 UEFA Champions League winners FC Porto will look to get one over Atletico Madrid when they travel to the Spanish capital.
The visitors played Atletico in the group stage last season but could not win them over two legs. Their first meeting last season was at Wanda Metropolitano and it ended goalless before Simeone’s side ran out 3-1 winners in the second leg in an ill-tempered match in Portugal.
Sergio Conceicao’s side are playing in their 24th season in the UEFA Champions League this year. Only Barcelona and Real Madrid (26) have made more appearances in the group stage of the UCL than they. So they will come into this group as European royalty.
Their form coming into this tie puts them in a good place as they have won five of their last six games with a 3-1 loss to Rio Ave in the league at the end of August the only exception this season.
With the tie with Club Brugge in Porto coming up next on September 13, before they travel to Germany to face Leverkusen, an early win in this tie could be crucial when it comes to their chances of making the knockout round.
Possible FC Porto starting line-up
Diogo Costa; Zaidu Sanusi, Ivan Marcano, Pepe, Joao Mario; Mateus Uribe, Otavio, Bruno Costa; Pepe, Mehdi Taremi, Evanilson.
Injured: Marko Grujic, Wilson Manafa
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Prediction
Atletico Madrid 2-2 Porto
