Atletico Madrid vs. Manchester City Predictions: Expect a feisty affair in this second leg encounter

Spain is the destination for the blue side of Manchester as Pep Guardiola’s side head to Madrid with a goal advantage against Diego Simeone’s Atletico.

The opening leg was dominated by City in terms of possession, however they struggled to really get at the Spanish clubs defence which as it has been for so many years, compact and well organised. The hosts managed just two shots on goal in the entirety of the game and forced Slovenian goalkeeper Jan Oblak to make just a single save.

Atletico arrived with a single purpose, sit deep and frustrate the home side which has been a success for them in this competition under Argentinian head coach, Simeone. His side had no attacking threat at all during the opening leg and failed to register a single shot compared to Manchester City’s fifteen.

Atleti fans will be right behind their team come Wednesday night at the Wanda Metropolitano knowing this tie is certainly not over despite the English side as short at 1/10 to progress. The negative display in Manchester could be said to have worked and the longer they keep Pep’s side at bay the greater chance they could have to strike back with a goal.

The most goals to be scored after the break is available at 21/20 with Bet365 which is something I'm willing to get behind, I feel the hosts will want to keep things tight as they did in Manchester and know if the fall behind early on then it could be the end for them in the competition.

With Atletico having to become more expansive towards the latter stages given they are still trailing, the visitors can then quite easily catch them on the break with the abundance of quality they possess in attacking positions and put the game to bed. This selection landed in the reverse leg last Tuesday.

With the importance of this fixture and the Spanish clubs extremely high card counts in the competition this campaign we could see German referee Daniel Siebert reach for his pocket a good few times. 

In the four Champions League games at the Wanda Metropolitano in the 2021/2022 season there has been on average of 6.75 cards per 90. In those four fixtures Atletico have received 2.50 cards on average with the visitors seeing a massive 4.25 cards on average.

I'm favouring towards a bigger price in the card market which has seen all four visitors hit the requirement in this competition with Simeone’s men hitting the mark on three of four occasions.

With a hostile atmosphere and a feisty side in Atletico things could quite easily become heated between the two sides. This bet also landed at the Etihad.

Tactics will be the key to success for either side during this clash, knowing when to attack and when to sit deep and absorb the pressure. Atletico Madrid will need to remain resilient and be clinical in attacks as they may not be given a whole load of chances against a talented Manchester City side.