Atletico aim to finish job against Liverpool

MADRID: Atletico Madrid may have to fight to the end to finish in La Liga’s top four but the success of their season will depend on holding on against Liverpool in the Champions League on Wednesday.

At the end of a breathless 2-2 draw with Sevilla on Saturday, Atletico sat fifth in the table, behind both their opponents and Getafe, with Real Sociedad able to overtake them too if they win their game in hand on Tuesday. It means the possibility of Atletico missing out on Champions League qualification for the first time in seven years is very real and will come into even sharper focus next weekend should they slip up at a resurgent Athletic Bilbao. By then, Diego Simeone’s side will either be lamenting a second consecutive exit in Europe before the quarter-finals or flying high, after pulling off a momentous upset by knocking out the reigning champions at Anfield.

Few gave Atletico even an outside chance ahead of their throwback display at the Wanda Metropolitano last month, when guts, determination and diligence gave them a shock 1-0 lead to preserve in the second leg.

Asked to describe his team’s performance, Simeone said: “The word that comes to mind is calm, that tranquility that you feel when you work as a team and know you can do anything.”