Girona may have thrashed Las Palmas in their last game, but they could face the backlash of an Atletico Madrid side reeling from a defeat.
Atleti boss Diego Simeone on what his side need to improve on: “We need to work on our transitions, arriving in the box with more players, promoting the collective work that our team do.
“Above all, we mustn’t think individually and manage the situations of the lads that haven’t started much.
“It seems that when they play, they are phenomena and when they don’t, they’re bad players.
“They help us in the way of teamwork, and I hope this important part of the group can stay strong.
“Squads take value from these players, not those that always start.”
Girona boss Pablo Machin on ‘bullfighting’ Diego Costa: “We’ll be facing the bull that was in a bull pen and went half a season without playing,
“He is the ideal striker for Atletico for how he plays, and they’re the team that have got the best out of him.
“We’ll have to bullfight him. It’ll be complicated, but we mustn’t let him be excessively brave.”
Atletico Madrid (probable): Oblak; Vrsaljko, Gimenez, Savic, Lucas; Carrasco, Gabi, Saul, Koke; Griezmann, Costa
Injuries/suspensions: Filipe (I) Godin (S)
Girona (probable): Bono; Ramalho, Bernardo, Muniesa; Maffeo, Pons, Granell, Mojica; Portu, Borja Garcia; Olunga
Injuries/suspensions: Stuani, Alcala (I)
Referee: De Burgos Bengoetxea
Form guide: Atleti – 2nd (W W L W W) Girona – 11th (W L L W W)
Previous meeting: Girona 2-2 Atleti
Venue: Wanda Metropolitano
Kick-off time: 15:15 GMT/16:15 local time
