The Istanbul club, under Okan Buruk, dominates domestically and secured another “golden double” last spring. However, this season they have yet to pull away from their pursuers, led by Fenerbahce. They did lose the Super Cup to them, though.
In Madrid, Atletico reclaimed their usual third place last season. However, challenging Real Madrid and Barcelona remains elusive; in fact, they’re currently having to compete with a surprisingly solid Villarreal in La Liga. They also lost to Real in the Super Cup.
This time, the Turkish side received a direct entry to the main stage of the Champions League. They started with a 1-5 loss in Frankfurt but then notched consecutive wins over Liverpool, Bodo/Glimt, and Ajax. However, in the last two rounds, they lost 0-1 to Union at home and Monaco away.
The Spaniards narrowly missed a draw in the first round at Liverpool, and their next away game, at Arsenal, resulted in a heavy 0-4 defeat. But Diego Simeone’s men won all their other Champions League matches, and in spectacular fashion: 5-1 against Eintracht, 3-1 against Union, 2-1 against Inter, and 3-2 against PSV.
Galatasaray lost both of their last two matches
The club has parity in the Champions League – averaging 1.33 goals scored and conceded per match
Atletico have won four out of their last five Champions League games
The team scores an average of 2.5 goals, but also concedes 2.0 per game.
Galatasaray (probable lineup): Cakir – Elmali, Bardakci, Sanchez, Szalai – Sara, Gundogan, Yilmaz, Akgun, Sane – Icardi
Atletico (probable lineup): Oblak – Ruggieri, Gantzko, Pubil, Llorente – Alex Baena, Koke, Barrios, Simeone – Alvarez, Sorloth.
There have been six official meetings between these teams. The first three ended in draws, after which only the Spaniards secured victories.
