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One point off AS Monaco on Wednesday night will see Atlético Madrid return to the Champions League knockout stages for the first time since 2016/17.
Crisis-riddled Monaco — now coached by France legend Thierry Henry — are likely to bring up the rear in Group A, and it seems unlikely their hurtle toward the bottom will be halted in the Spanish capital. However, this should be an emotional night for one Radamel Falcao — Monaco’s captain fired Atlético to three trophies between 2011 and 2013, and he will return to Madrid for the first time since his departure five-and-a-half years ago.
Atlético, coming off Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Barcelona, are expected to recover a couple of the walking wounded but are also expected to be without Diego Costa. And it could be for a while, too — the Spain international is dealing with persistent foot trouble and reports around the country indicate that both club and the €66m forward are considering surgery.
In the meantime, José Giménez should receive the medical all-clear prior to kickoff and will probably start next to Lucas in central defense. Juanfran could return to the XI after Santiago Arias started against Barça, and it could well be Nikola Kalinić up top next to Antoine Griezmann.
Possible XI
Oblak; Juanfran, Giménez, Lucas, Filipe Luís; Thomas P, Rodri, Koke, Saúl; Griezmann, Kalinić.
Predicted scoreline
Atlético 2-0 Monaco.
How to watch
Date: Nov. 28, 2018
Location: Estadio Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain
Kickoff time: 6:55 p.m. CEST, 5:55 p.m. GMT/BST, 12:55 p.m. EST, 9:55 a.m. PST
SB Nation opposition blog: N/A
Available TV/streaming: Movistar Liga de Campeones 1 (Spain), BT Sport 1 (United Kingdom), TNT, B/R Live (United States), RMC Sport 1 (France), DAZN (Germany), SuperSport 5 (Ghana), ESPN Play Sur (Colombia), Eleven Sports 2 (Portugal), PPTV Sport (China).