Diego Simeone accepts Atletico Madrid are meeting a Liverpool side back to their best led by the “extraordinary” Mohamed Salah, reports
The Argentinian masterminded victories in both legs of their last-16 encounter in 2020, which ended the Reds’ reign as European champions.
Salah himself has 10 goals in as many appearances and has scored in every match bar one.
A return to the Wanda Metropolitano, the scene of their 2019 Champions League final victory over Tottenham, will be their toughest assignment yet and Simeone is well aware of what is awaiting the Spanish champions.
“Liverpool are going through a fantastic spell of football, they seem to have a different rhythm, and it is a pleasure to see them play.
“They have no fear to leave spaces at the back. They press high, play a high line, have speed.
“I don’t expect anything other than a team who will make things very difficult for us.
“We need to match their intensity and then look for our own chances. We will try to find ways to hurt them.
When they were beaten in 2020 Klopp said Atleti did not play “proper football”.
Asked what he had to say to that criticism at his pre-match press conference on Monday Simeone, whose side have lost just one of their last 30 home European games, responded: “Nothing.”
