Football = Soccer
Five names to watch out for in Atletico Madrid v Chelsea in the Champions League
4 hours ago / autty
The Champions League draw in August once again placed Atletico Madrid and Chelsea on a collision course, as they both hunt for European glory.
Coming up against each other on Wednesday night, kicking off at 20:45 CET, the match marks a European debut for the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano following two League games for Atletico in their new home.
For such an important match in the Champions League, we discuss five players from the past and present of both clubs.
Diego Costa
The return of Costa to Madrid has been the transfer soap opera of the summer, and he will be preparing himself to be in prime condition when he returns to Diego Simeone's side in January 2018. In 2014 Costa swapped the Estadio Vicente Calderon for Stamford Bridge, scoring 58 goals in 120 games in the process. After three years in the Premier League he has now returned to Spain, with a breakdown in his relationship with Chelsea boss Antonio Conte plain for all to see. Look out for this one as an eager spectator on Wednesday night.
Fernando Torres
Another player that is well known to the Chelsea fans is Torres. Having left his boyhood club Atletico in 2007 to join Liverpool, Chelsea then paid around 65 million euros for the Fuenlabrada-born striker in 2011 - making him the most expensive Spanish player in history. That record was broken this summer when Chelsea signed Alvaro Morata from Real Madrid.
El Nino scored 45 goals in 172 games at Stamford Bridge, but his most memorable time at the club was during their run to the Champions League final 2011/12. Chelsea eventually beat Bayern Munich in the final, but it was Torres' goal against Barcelona in the semi-final that secured their passage through.
Thibaut Courtois
The Belgian international enjoyed his best years at Atletico, despite never being a permanent member of the squad. Courtois played for three seasons at the Calderon, on loan from Chelsea, winning a LaLiga medal and finishing as a runner up in the Champions League. He developed into one of the world's top goalkeepers, winning the Zamora trophy in the 2011/12 season.
However Jose Mourinho installed him as first choice at Chelsea upon his return to the club, and he has remained No. 1 for Chelsea ever since. The Belgian is a friend of Costa, and shared a joke with the striker on Twitter about their return to Atletico this week, but the goalkeeper only has praise for Atletico's 'new' signing.
Alvaro Morata
This summer saw Morata become the most expensive Spanish player in history, knocking Torres from top spot in the process. His arrival in London was the final move which allowed Costa to return to Spain. Atletico also gained financially from the move, as they received a cut of the fee paid to Real Madrid for the striker, having previously had Morata as part of their youth set up.
Los Colchoneros were reported to be interested in signing Morata from their great rivals last summer, however a move did not materialise.
Filipe Luis
Another player that knows what it is like to play for both clubs is Filipe Luis, after enjoying a season in West London. The Brazilian international left Atletico for Chelsea at the start of the 2014/15 campaign, however after making just 26 appearances for Chelsea, he returned to Simeone's side after just a year. Luis was immediately restored to the Atletico line up in his favoured left-back role, and has remained a regular ever since.
The other player to mention is Tiago, with the Portuguese midfielder also having played for both sides. Following the expiration of his contract at Atletico in 2014, Tiago toyed with the idea of returning to Chelsea for a second spell- having played there in 2004/05. However a deal failed to appear and he opted to renew his contract at Atletico, and he is now Simeone's assistant manager.