Atletico Madrid Must Repeat Game Plan to Beat Barcelona in Champions League

Atletico Madrid came out of the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona with a 2-1 deficit to make up at home, but they will take much heart and positivity from most of the match, even if that optimism is tinged with regret.

In control and in the lead until half-time, Fernando Torres' red card shortly after he had scored changed the ability of Atletico to defend deep in a compact unit and still have an outlet or two to engage Barcelona in the other half of the field.

Naturally, the dismissal cost them after the break, and there's a one-goal difference to make up in the second leg, but Diego Simeone's game plan was as close to perfect as it can get against Barcelona and the manager has to repeat the approach in the return game to lead his side through to the semi-finals.

Press and counter

Atletico's two-part approach involved very different methods of containing Barcelona.

Initially, there was the intense, high press—outside Barca's own penalty box at times—forcing the home side into playing back to the goalkeeper or else trying to be more direct into the attacking midfielders' feet.

At times it worked; Atleti created a few early chances by winning back the ball high upfield, while at other times the skill of Barca's players on the ball meant they played through the opposition and attacked into space.

Then the second part of the defensive strategy came to light.

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Two banks of four, with another attacker dropping wide from time to time, and Atleti's impenetrable wall forced the home side wide continually.

There was no danger from those areas in the first half, and Jan Oblak's clean sheet at the break was as predictable as the sporadic threat on the counter from Atletico themselves was.

It worked perfectly well, up until Atleti lost a man, and Barca raised the tempo after the break.

Carrasco: The vital cog

Such is the tactical importance of Yannick Carrasco for Atletico Madrid now, particularly in close or big games, that he was pushed straight back into the starting lineup after recovering from injury.

His pace on the counter, his ability to dribble past defenders and some selfless link-up play, all alongside the endeavour and tracking back demanded as standard, make him not only a perfect fit for Atletico's tactics but also a wonderful out-ball for the team.

He is their pressure release, their counter-attack lead and a source of chances which doesn't rely on Antoine Griezmann.

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Simeone's reliance on Carrasco means he doesn't just feature wide, he also figures centrally as an attacking threat.

With Torres suspended it would be no surprise to see Carrasco paired up front with Griezmann for the second leg, giving great speed and work rate from the front and a real goal threat after turnovers in possession.

Obvious, but key, improvement

Small details matter in football, rather more at the top end when teams are so close to each other in terms of quality.

Opinion is split on the first leg, specifically with regard to whether Barcelona would have broken down an 11-man Atletico, but there's certainly more of a chance that Los Rojiblancos would have held on with a full compliment of players.

The lazy approach is to blame the match official or the opposition—Barcelona have a history of refereeing decisions falling in their favour in Europe—but that's both unhelpful and irrelevant.

Plainly put, Atleti were lucky to finish with 10 on the night, never mind 11. Augusto Fernandez's reckless two-footed lunge could easily have seen red late in the game, while Lucas Hernandez also escaped a blatant chop on Neymar with only a yellow.

Torres' red card was naivety and aggression combined, as he led the press from the front with too much gusto.

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Atletico play on the edge, it's their way of bridging the gap to the very top sides.

It should be noted, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that—as long as they stay within bounds. When they don't, and the red cards are flashed their way, the game plan unravels.

Diego Godin's absurd second yellow on Luis Suarez in the Liga match a few months ago was a similar instance of their own impetuousness causing their downfall.

The style of the team demands work rate, cover and responsibility from all, and when one is missing, defending becomes much harder, even for a side as good as Atletico. Keep everyone on the pitch and a clean sheet is certainly within reach.

It has already been shown that Atletico can penetrate and score past Barcelona, having done so in all three meetings this term. They have to do it again at the Camp Nou in the second leg, and this time, keep everyone on the field.

A 1-0 scoreline is good enough to knock out the holders and progress to the semi-finals. It's more than possible for Atletico to achieve, using the exact same game plan—just with marginally more self-restraint.

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