Atlético bar Chelsea's path to third final

The last two winners of the UEFA Europa League meet at Estadio Vicente Calderón for the right to progress to the UEFA Champions League final. For José Mourinho, appearing in the semi-finals for the fifth season in a row, it is a return to the city which was his home for three years, but his Chelsea FC team face a formidable task as Club Atlético de Madrid have never lost to English visitors.

• Signed by Chelsea in 2011, Thibaut Courtois is in his third season on loan at Atlético and will look to help deny his permanent employers their third UEFA Champions League final in seven seasons. The Spanish side, in the semi-finals for the first time since 1974, are the last unbeaten team left in the competition having won eight and drawn two of their ten matches this season.

Previous meetings
• The teams met in the 2012 UEFA Super Cup when Radamel Falcao's first-half hat-trick gave Atlético a 4-1 victory in Monaco and their second triumph in the competition in three years. Gary Cahill scored Chelsea's consolation after Miranda had made it 4-0 on the hour.

• The lineups at the Stade Louis II on 31 August 2012 were:
Atlético: Courtois, Juanfran, Godín, Miranda, Filipe Luís, Mario Suárez, Gabi, Koke (García 81), Adrián López (Rodríguez 56), Arda Turan, Falcao (Emre Belözoğlu 87).
Chelsea: Čech, Ivanović, David Luiz, Cahill, Cole (Bertrand 69), Ramires (Oscar 46), Lampard, Mikel, Mata (Sturridge 81), Hazard, Torres.

• The teams' only other encounters came in the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League group stage when Chelsea collected four points from their Spanish rivals to finish top of Group D. Atlético came third and transferred to the maiden edition of the UEFA Europa League, which they eventually won.

• The game in Spain ended 2-2, confirming Chelsea's place in the knockout phase and ending Atlético's hopes of progress. Substitute Sergio Agüero (66, 90+1) salvaged a point after Didier Drogba (82, 88) had also scored twice.

• The teams at the Estadio Vicente Calderón on 3 November 2009 were:
Atlético: Asenjo, Perea, Pablo Ibáñez, Juanito, López, Reyes (Rodríguez 73), Cléber, Paulo Assunção, Simão (Jurado 83), Sinama Pongolle (Agüero 53), Forlán.
Chelsea: Čech, Belletti, Alex, Terry, A Cole, Essien (Ballack 59), Lampard, Malouda, J Cole (Deco 70), Drogba, Kalou (Anelka 70).

• Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea had won 4-0 at Stamford Bridge, Salomon Kalou scoring twice (41, 52) before Frank Lampard (69) added another and Luis Perea (90+1) headed a Florent Malouda free-kick into his own net. The defeat prompted the departure of Atlético coach Abel Resino, Quique Sánchez Flores taking over.

• The lineups on 21 October 2009 were:
Chelsea: Čech, Belletti, Ivanović, Terry, A Cole (Malouda 75), Ballack, Essien, Lampard, Kalou (Zhirkov 73), Deco, Anelka (Sturridge 78).
Atlético: Asenjo, Ujfaluši, Perea, Domínguez, López, Cléber (Rodríguez 65), Raúl García, Paulo Assunção (Jurado 54), Forlán, Simão (Reyes 77), Agüero.

Match background
• Atlético have taken on English sides 21 times, winning eight, drawing eight and losing five. At home their record is W5 D4 L0. In seven two-legged ties with English clubs in UEFA competition, Atlético have won five and lost two.

• In 2009/10 they beat Fulham FC 2-1 after extra time in Hamburg in the inaugural UEFA Europa League final. They had put out Liverpool FC on away goals in the semi-final, winning 1-0 at home before going down 2-1 away. Atlético lost 5-1 to Tottenham Hotspur FC in the 1962/63 European Cup Winners' Cup final in Rotterdam.

• Atlético have won all five home games in this season's competition, most recently a 1-0 triumph against FC Barcelona in the quarter-final second leg that secured a 2-1 aggregate win. It was their 17th victory in their last 18 home European games, the only blip a 2-0 loss to FC Rubin Kazan in the UEFA Europa League round of 32 in February 2013. 

• This is Atlético's 13th appearance in a major UEFA club competition semi-final; they have won six and lost six.

• Their three previous three European Cup semi-finals have produced one win and two defeats:
1973/74 Celtic FC, won 2-0 (0-0 a, 2-0 h)
1970/71 AFC Ajax, lost 1-3 (1-0 h, 0-3 a)
1958/59 Real Madrid CF, lost 1-2 in a replay (1-2 a, 1-0 h)

• Chelsea's seventh UEFA Champions League semi-final appearance in 11 campaigns was sealed with a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge against Paris Saint-Germain after they had lost the away leg 3-1.

• Before losing to Atlético in Monaco, Chelsea had gone 15 competitive fixtures without defeat against Spanish opponents. Their last reverse prior to that had come against Barcelona in the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League round of 16, a 2-1 home loss.

• Chelsea's record away to Liga opposition is W3 D6 L5; overall their record is W14 D11 L7. In two-legged UEFA competition ties their record is W4 L5.

• They have twice beaten Real Madrid in finals on neutral ground, lifting the 1998 UEFA Super Cup with a 1-0 win in Monaco. They won their first continental honour by beating Madrid in the 1971 European Cup Winners' Cup final in Athens, prevailing 2-1 in the replay after a 1-1 draw.

• Chelsea have won one of their four European semi-finals against Spanish opponents. In the UEFA Champions League, they beat Barcelona in 2011/12 having lost to the same opponents in 2009; in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup they lost to RCD Mallorca (1999) and Real Zaragoza (1995).

• Chelsea, UEFA Champions League winners two years ago, have won two of their six previous semi-finals:
2011/12 FC Barcelona, won 3-2 (1-0 h, 2-2 a)
2008/09 FC Barcelona, 1-1, lost on away goals (0-0 a, 1-1 h)
2007/08 Liverpool FC, won 4-3 (1-1 a, 3-2 h)
2006/07 Liverpool FC, 1-1, lost 1-4 on pens (1-0 h, 0-1 a)
2004/05 Liverpool FC, lost 0-1 (0-0 h, 0-1 a)
2003/04 AS Monaco FC, lost 3-5 (1-3 a, 2-2 h)

• This is Chelsea's 12th semi-final in UEFA club competition. They have won five of the previous 11.

• Atlético have lost all three of their UEFA club competition penalty shoot-outs:
6-7 v Derby County FC, 1974/75 UEFA Cup second round
1-3 v ACF Fiorentina, 1989/90 UEFA Cup first round
1-3 v Villarreal CF, 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup final

• Chelsea's record in European penalty shoot-outs is:
4-5 v FC Bayern München, 2013 UEFA Super Cup
4-3 v FC Bayern München, 2011/12 UEFA Champions League final
5-6 v Manchester United FC, 2007/08 UEFA Champions League final
1-4 v Liverpool FC, 2006/07 UEFA Champions League semi-final

• Mourinho, who captured the UEFA Champions League with FC Porto (2004) and FC Internazionale Milano (2010), is bidding to become the first manager to win the European Cup with three different teams. Only Bob Paisley (Liverpool FC 1977, 1978, 1981) has won the trophy three times as a coach.

• Mourinho left Inter to join Real Madrid in 2010 and guided his team to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals in each of the next three seasons, losing to Barcelona (3-1 on aggregate), Bayern (3-1 on penalties after 3-3 aggregate draw) and Borussia Dortmund (3-4).

Team ties
• Courtois joined Chelsea from KRC Genk in 2011. He has made over 100 Liga appearances for Atlético and played in the 2012 UEFA Super Cup win against the Blues.

• Born in the Madrid suburb of Fuenlabrada, Fernando Torres became Atlético's youngest captain at 19 and scored 84 goals in 214 Liga appearances for the Rojiblancos before joining Liverpool in 2007.

• Tiago scored four goals in 34 Premier League games for Chelsea between 2004 and 2006. 

• Mourinho's record against Atlético with Real Madrid was W8 D0 L1. The sole defeat came in last season's Copa del Rey final at the Santiago Bernabéu, Diego Simeone's side winning 2-1 after extra time.

• While an SS Lazio player, Simeone lost against Mourinho's Porto in the 2002/03 UEFA Cup semi-finals.

• Torres and Juanfran were in Spain's victorious UEFA EURO 2012 squad. Koke, Mario Suárez, Adrián López, Diego Costa, David Villa and César Azpilicueta are also Spanish internationals.

• David Luiz, Oscar, Ramires, Willian, Filipe Luís, Miranda and Diego are all Brazil internationals. Tiago and Hilário have been capped by Portugal. Courtois, Toby Alderweireld and Eden Hazard are team-mates with Belgium.

• Azpilicueta won three of his five games against Atlético for CA Osasuna between 2007 and 2010. 

• Villa scored in Valencia's 2-1 UEFA Champions League group stage defeat at home to Chelsea on 3 October 2007.

• Samuel Eto'o scored seven goals in 12 appearances against Atlético for Real Madrid, Mallorca and Barcelona between 1999 and 2009.