“Go and Play Tennis”: Diego Simeone Sends Bold Message to Lamine Yamal Ahead of UCL Clash
- Atletico Madrid are set to clash with Barcelona in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League later today
- The Los Rojiblancos will host the Catalans at the Metropolitano Stadium, Madrid, Spain
- Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has sent a bold message to Spanish international Lamine Yamal
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has sent a message to Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal ahead of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg at the Metropolitano Stadium later today.
The Los Rojiblancos are heading into the encounter with a huge advantage after the first leg.
A first-half free-kick from Julian Alvarez and a strike from Alexander Sorloth handed Atletico a valuable 2-0 win in a tense encounter at Camp Nou.
Source: Getty Images
Barcelona had looked impressive early on before Pau Cubarsí was sent off for denying Giuliano Simeone a clear goalscoring opportunity.
The two sides will meet for the third time in 10 days, this time with a place in the Champions League semi-finals at stake.
Read also
Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona: Mysterious cat predicts Champions League quarter-final result
Barcelona come into the game on the back of a 4-1 win over Espanyol, while Atletico suffered a 2-1 defeat to Sevilla after resting several key players.
Both teams have met twice in the Champions League knockout stages, both times at the quarterfinal stage, with Atletico going through in 2014 and 2016 on their run to the final each season.
Simeone responds to Yamal's request
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has responded to Lamine Yamal's request ahead of the second-leg match.
According to beIN Sports, the Spanish international appealed to Simeone to give him a one-on-one defense. Yamal said:
”I feel great, I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s game, I’m motivated for it and I hope I can make a difference, let’s see if Cholo does me a favor and puts me one-on-one with some player and I hope so."
Responding to Yamal's request, Diego Simeone advised the youngster to play tennis instead of football. He said:
"If he wants a 1 vs 1 sport, he can go and play tennis.”
Simeone admitted that Barcelona is a good side, adding that they are ready to implement their plans of stopping Barca. He said via Barca Blaugranes:
Source: Getty Images
“We are convinced of what we need and what we will look for. We have to play as we have been competing against them, we know that they are a very good rival, but also our goal, which is to qualify."
Atletico and Barcelona have faced each other four times this season, with the Catalans winning both La Liga encounters, while Atletico triumphed 4-3 on aggregate in the Copa del Rey semi-finals.
Cat predicts winner between Atletico and Barcelona
Legit.ng earlier reported that Nimbus Pronos, a feline oracle which has a reputation for predicting football matches, has picked which team will reach the semi-final between Atletico Madrid and Barcelona.
The cat backs Barcelona to proceed to the semi-final despite Atletico Madrid’s two-goal advantage, which means Barcelona wins by at least three goals.
Source: Legit.ng
