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Leverkusen v Atlético preview

While Roger Schmidt accepts Bayer 04 Leverkusen face a tall order to oust last year's runners-up, Diego Simeone thinks concentration is key for Club Atlético de Madrid.

Leverkusen train on the eve of the match
Leverkusen train on the eve of the match ©Getty Images

Leverkusen coach Roger Schmidt says his side need "two perfect days to go through"
Schmidt: "We must play on another level than in the Bundesliga"
Diego Simeone: "If we concentrate, we get a good result"
Leverkusen defender Ömer Toprak serves a one-game ban
The Werkself have lost their last four two-legged ties against Spanish opposition

Possible lineups
Leverkusen: Leno; Castro, Spahić, Papadopoulos, Wendell; Reinartz, Rolfes; Bellarabi, Çalhanoğlu, Son; Drmić.
• Out: Kruse (ankle), Ömer Toprak (suspended), Jedvaj (hamstring), Bender (knee)

Atlético: Moyà; Juanfran, Godín, Miranda, Siqueira; Saúl, Gabi, Tiago, Raúl García; Griezmann, Mandžukić.
• Out: Koke (hamstring)
• Doubtful: Arda (dead leg), Giménez (illness)

Roger Schmidt, Leverkusen coach
The group stage was tough, but in this round stronger opponents await us. Atlético have a good team, they were in the final last season. For years they have played at a consistent level. It is very hard to play against Atlético, but we are confident of a good performance. We want to show the crowd that we have a chance. If you are Bayer Leverkusen and you play against one of last year's finalists, you are the outsider.

Tomorrow we have the first 90 minutes of 180. We have to show everybody that we can cause Atlético trouble, but we will need two perfect days to go through. As the home team we have a lot of attacking power and we can create chances, but it won't be easy against a defensively strong side like Atlético. If we get a good result tomorrow, everything is possible in the second match.

Atlético have a great mentality. They always want to win and this is why they have achieved good results in the past. Nobody likes playing against Atlético. This says everything about the draw we got. We will have to play on another level than in the Bundesliga. My team have given a lot to be here and we will do everything to go as far as we can.

Diego Simeone, Atlético coach
It's a huge match for us. We want to keep control of the game and also keep possession of the ball. But we have to be careful. If we're in possession, Leverkusen will apply a lot of pressure to get the ball back.

We're in very good shape and are really enthusiastic. But we have to be very focused – this is always very important for our performance. If we do that, we get a good result.

Leverkusen have a good coach and good players, they're a well-balanced team. It's always important to show respect to your opponents. I don't know if teams give us more respect now just because we've done well in the past. There may be more attractive opponents than us, who you would rather face, but we're here. I don't think we're the favourites in this tie. It starts at 0-0 so anything is possible.

Weekend results
FC Augsburg 2-2 Leverkusen (Caiuby 59, Hitz 90+4; Drmić 8, Reinartz 84)
Atlético 3-0 UD Almería (Mandžukić 13pen, Griezmann 20 29)

Form guide (all competitions)
Leverkusen: DLLWDD
Atlético: WLWWLW

Match facts
• What were the scores when Leverkusen and Atlético met in the 2010/11 UEFA Europa League group stage? Find out in our extensive match background.

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