Aiming to make it past the Champions League knockout playoff round for a second consecutive season, Club Brugge welcome Atletico Madrid to the Jan Breydel Stadium on Wednesday.
Blauw-Zwart beat Atalanta home and away at this same stage last term to reach the last 16 of Europe’s premier competition, and they will be looking to seize control of this tie ahead of the second leg in Spain next week.
Ivan Leko’s men will draw confidence from their strong finish to the league phase, having gone unbeaten in their final three outings (W2, D1), winning the last two to secure a 19th-placed finish in the 36-team table.
Those victories also form part of Brugge’s broader upturn in form across all competitions, with their most recent outing coming in the Brugse Derby against Cercle Brugge, where Blauw-Zwart claimed victory at the weekend to remain third in the Belgian top-flight standings, just three points off the summit.
Atletico, meanwhile, enter Wednesday’s encounter on the back of a disappointing defeat to Mallorca, a result that dropped Diego Simeone’s side to fourth in La Liga and further underlined their inconsistency following an emphatic win over Barcelona in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final.
Failure to win their final two league-phase matches (D1, L1) also saw Atletico slip out of the top eight, including a frustrating home defeat to debutants Bodo/Glimt on matchday eight.
This means the two-time Champions League finalists must take the longer route to the last 16 this time, having secured direct qualification last season, though they will hope their continental pedigree proves decisive in this tie.
How the bookies view it: Visitors backed as favourites
Despite their poor finish in the league phase, the bookmakers still favour Atletico to secure victory, reflected in their 13/5 odds on Ladbrokes. Brugge are also priced at 13/5, while the draw is available at 14/5.
Head-to-head: Even history, but recent success for Brugge
Both sides have met eight times in European competition, with three wins apiece and two draws.
However, Brugge have enjoyed the more recent success, going three games unbeaten against Atletico (W1, D2) without conceding, including a 2-0 home win during the 2022-23 Champions League campaign.
Players to watch: Ademola Lookman has history with Brugge
Ademola Lookman has previous history against Brugge, having been part of the Atalanta side eliminated by the Belgian outfit in last season’s knockout playoff.
The winger endured a mixed second leg in that tie, scoring a consolation goal but also missing a penalty that drew criticism from his manager at the time.
Lookman has both scored and assisted in two of his three starts since joining Atletico, and the 4/5 on Bet365 for the Nigerian to register a direct goal contribution on Wednesday looks appealing.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Probable line-ups
Brugge remain without goalkeeper Dani van den Heuvel, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since January. Lynnt Audoor and Jorne Spileers are also unavailable, while midfielder Ludovit Reis is set to miss a fourth straight game.
Meanwhile, Atletico will have to cope without midfielder Pablo Barrios, who has been out since sustaining a thigh injury against Real Betis earlier this month.
Club Brugge: Mignolet; Sabbe, Ordonez, Mechele, Seys; Stankovic, Onyedika; Tzolis, Vanaken, Diakhon; Tresoldi
Atletico: Oblak; Molina, Pubill, Hancko, Ruggeri; Llorente, Koke, Griezmann; Simeone, Alvarez, Lookman
Anything else that catches the eye?
There has been an interesting trend in the corner market for Brugge at home, with the Belgian side earning fewer flag kicks than their opponents in all four league-phase matches on their own turf this season.
What is more, only Liverpool registered more corners than Atletico (55) across the eight Champions League league-phase fixtures, so backing the Madrid outfit to win the flag-kick count at 7/10 on Betano looks a solid option.
Over 2.5 goals landed in all eight of Brugge’s league-phase matches, while the same outcome occurred in seven of Atletico’s eight games in the competition, making a repeat at 13/20 on Ladbrokes an appealing pick.
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