Atletico Madrid Coach Diego Simeone insists he is treating the Europa League with equal importance as he would the Champions League.
Los Rojiblancos have reached two of the last four Champions League finals, along with a semi-final, but were surprisingly eliminated in the group stages this campaign.
“We must treat the competition with the same respect and with the same mindset and focus as we do with the Champions League,” Simeone told reporters at his pre-match press conference.
“My full focus and energy is going into these games and my aim is for the players to be in this position also, it cannot be any other way.
“We treat this competition the same, we prepare for every game and every opponent until we cannot progress any further, it is that simple.
“It is a difficult competition with very strong teams – Copenhagen play in a passionate stadium and have a good team, who like to pass and play.
“The return of Diego (Godin) is significant as he adds a lot of quality and experience to our defence.”
