MADRID: Atletico Madrid are hoping a Spanish Cup derby against Real Madrid today will lead to their first win over their city rival in over a decade.
Atletico last beat their crosstown neighbour in 1999, but all those matches have come in the league. The last time Atletico beat Madrid in the domestic cup competition was also at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium – in the 1992 final.
But Atletico are coming off Monday’s humiliating 4-1 league loss at Hercules, while Madrid stayed on the heels of Spanish leader Barcelona with a 4-2 win over Villarreal.
While Quique Sanchez Flores did not lose a two-legged series as coach of Atletico last season – guiding them to the Europa League title and last season’s Spanish Cup final – the team’s lack of consistency this season do not bode well ahead of a trip to the Bernabeu, where Madrid have won all 14 of their games.
Atletico, however, have signed winger Juanfran Torres from Osasuna on a four-year deal that ties him to the club until 2015.
Spanish media reports say Atletico paid just over €4mil for Juanfran, who is expected to take Simao Sabrosa’s spot after the Portuguese winger left for Besiktas.
Sanchez selected Juanfran in his squad for tomorrow’s match against Real after he passed his medical yesterday.
“In the next two days we must reorganise the team and go back to what we were,” Sanchez Flores said. “This is the same team that won two titles, so it wouldn’t be surprising if we got back on the winning track.”
Madrid have won 12 of the 18 matches since Atletico last triumphed in the Spanish capital derby, with that 3-1 win coming in a season where they would ultimately be relegated to Division Two.
Madrid, 17-time Cup champions, are playing in the final eight for the first time since 2006, which was also the last time they reached the semi-finals.
Their last domestic cup win came in 1993. Madrid will be led by Cristiano Ronaldo, whose hat-trick against Villarreal took his overall season tally to 30 goals in 26 games.
Meanwhile, Division Two leader Real Betis is the last lower-tier team left in the competition. But they get the unenviable task of facing Barcelona, who are unbeaten in 26 games overall and are likely to field Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi.
New signing Ibrahim Afellay could get some minutes after making his Barcelona debut in Saturday’s 4-0 victory at Deportivo La Coruna after his transfer from PSV Eindhoven.
Villarreal have never won a major trophy so they are eager to reach this season’s final, but they must get through a tough match with defending champions Sevilla first.
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