Sports Blog 02/05/2017: UEFA Champions League Semi-Final 1st Leg Preview – Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid, Tuesday 2nd May 2017

Can Atletico Madrid finally get one over Real Madrid in Europe when they meet at 7.45pm on BT Sport 2?

For the third time in 4 seasons the Madrid pair are meeting in the Champions League – this time however, it’s not in the final, but one step before. Atletico were the losers in both the 2014 and 2016 finals, coming agonisingly close in each, and will be desperate to break their Real curse on Tuesday.



Diego Simone’s side have long been off the boil in La Liga, and sit 10 points behind Barcelona and Real Madrid in 3rd place. They’ve been far better in Europe, topping a group that included Bayern Munich before beating Bayer Leverkusen and Leicester – if only just – on the way to the semis. Despite some domestic disappointment – they also lost to Barca in the Copa del Rey semis – Atletico have had one consistent source of joy: Antoine Griezmann. The French forward, who may not be in Spain much longer, has maintained his Euros form, scoring 25 goals in all competitions; he sits at a Super Mega PGM of 17-21.

Frustratingly for Atletico, their city rivals have regularly outshone them this season. The 2 sides have already met twice and the Galacticos have the edge, winning 3-0 at the Vicente Calderon Stadium before drawing 1-1 at the Bernabeu, Atletico scraping a point thanks to Griezmann’s 85th minute equaliser.

As for Europe, Real’s slow start, where 3 draws in their group saw them finish in 2nd place behind Borussia Dortmund, led to an explosive run in the knockout rounds. Zinedine Zidane’s side breezed past Napoli 6-2 on aggregate, before making similar chump change out of Bayern Munich, winning 6-3 over 2 legs.

Predictably Cristiano Ronaldo led from the front against the German giants, scoring 5 of Real’s 6 goals. However the Portuguese captain hasn’t had the best season by his own lofty standards, scoring 32 goals in all competitions (and 7 in the Champions League) – in comparison Messi has managed 49 in the same amount of time. Still, for anyone else that’s an impressive haul, and leaves Ronaldo with a Super Mega PGM of 45-52.

The hosts have the advantage both psychologically and in terms of form, with Spreadex offering a Real Madrid/Atletico Madrid Goal Supremacy spread of 0.65-0.85 alongside a Total Goals spread of 2.4-2.6.