Chelsea and Atletico Madrid finally got a deal done for striker Diego Costa, who will head back to Spain after a tumultuous time in London. However, Costa won’t be on the field as Chelsea travels to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday in the Champions League.
What To Know About Chelsea
Chelsea got their Champions League campaign off to a rocking start with a 6-0 thrashing of FK Qarabag at home on September 12th as Pedro, Davide Zappacosta, Cesar Azpilicueta, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Michy Batshuayi all found the back of the net, along with an own goal. It was their first game back in the Champions League after missing out last season, and they had an easy time of it, but Atletico will be a much tougher task. They will likely start Alvaro Morata, who scored a hat trick in a 4-0 rout of Stoke City on the road in the Premier League on Saturday, and it’ll be a return home for Morata, who is from Madrid and played for Real Madrid before he was sold to Chelsea. He’ll want to have a big game in his homecoming.
What To Know About Atletico Madrid
Atletico drew 0-0 at Roma in their first Champions League game of the campaign in a match where both teams had their chances, but neither could capitalize. They’re coming off a 2-0 win over Sevilla at home in La Liga thanks to goals from Yannick Carrasco and Antoine Griezmann, but the dominant news surrounds Costa, who was in the stands for the win over Sevilla. Costa made his name at Atletico and then was sold to Chelsea, where he scored 52 goals in 89 games and won the Premier League twice. However, he couldn’t get along with manager Antonio Conte, who told Costa he could leave. Costa only wanted a return to Atletico and after a lot of conversation, he’ll head back there in January. If he can keep his head on straight, Costa will be a solid addition to an already-talented side, but he won’t be able to help them in this game. However, how much of a distraction might Costa be on both sides?
Outlook
Atletico is favored at home at +115 for this match, while Chelsea comes in at +290 and a draw is rated at +230. These two have met five times since 2009, with Atletico winning two and drawing two. Their last meeting came in the semifinals of the 2013-14 Champions League, where Atletico drew 0-0 at home, then won 3-1 at Chelsea (Costa scored for Atletico in that match). This match could be won in the midfield as Atletico’s Saul Niguez and Yannick Carrasco will go up against Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, and Bakayoko will likely see some time on the field as well, if not from the start. Kante is an excellent player, but Atletico has intelligent players and he can’t do everything by himself. It should be a cagey and physical affair on both sides, and a draw wouldn’t be a surprise at all.
There is a slew of Champions League games on tap for this week. Get all of the latest odds on the Champs League matchups at Play Shangrila.
