The margins between a good cup run and tangible success grow ever finer at this stage of the season, with the two biggest hitters in the UEFA Champions League, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich, ready to face off in the semi-final.
With the first leg taking place on Wednesday night, both head coaches know that their decisions on the day will shape how the tie evolves and who sits in the best shape for the second leg. It's not necessarily with the starting XIs that this first leg depends, though, it's with the substitutions and in-game alterations from Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone.
Both have immensely strong players—mentally and technically—to call upon. They will name teams to not lose and to have the potential to win, and attack the game in their different methods: Atletico pressing hard, countering fast and defending resolutely; Bayern with plenty of possession, movement in the final third and speed in the channels.
As Atleti defender Stefan Savic told Marca, "[Bayern] have another style totally different from ours, but that's the beauty of football—it can be played in different ways and all are worthy."
The matchup of Bayern's wingers against Atleti's full-backs will be critical throughout the 180 minutes of semi-final action, but look also to the benches for both teams.
With the first leg taking place on Wednesday night, both head coaches know that their decisions on the day will shape how the tie evolves and who sits in the best shape for the second leg. It's not necessarily with the starting XIs that this first leg depends, though, it's with the substitutions and in-game alterations from Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone.
Both have immensely strong players—mentally and technically—to call upon. They will name teams to not lose and to have the potential to win, and attack the game in their different methods: Atletico pressing hard, countering fast and defending resolutely; Bayern with plenty of possession, movement in the final third and speed in the channels.
As Atleti defender Stefan Savic told Marca, "[Bayern] have another style totally different from ours, but that's the beauty of football—it can be played in different ways and all are worthy."
The matchup of Bayern's wingers against Atleti's full-backs will be critical throughout the 180 minutes of semi-final action, but look also to the benches for both teams.
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