Kieran Trippier has revealed he has talked to his Atletico Madrid teammates about the atmosphere they can expect to face when they take on Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday.
Atleti hold a 1-0 advantage ahead of the round of 16 second leg thanks to Saul Niguez's strike three weeks ago at Wanda Metropolitano, but face a Reds side capable of overturning such a deficit.
Trippier, who played in last season's final when Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-0, has now admitted Anfield is a great venue but added that Atleti will only be thinking about reaching the quarter finals.
He said, as quoted by AS:
“They will try to be as intimidating as possible, but we have to go with a mentality to qualify. It will be complicated, but we are ready for the challenge. Our fans are very important, we hope to get the result we want.”
Trippier missed the first leg due to injury, with Croatian Sime Vrsaljko replacing the England international, but is fit again and expected to start at Anfield, having faced Sevilla, Espanyol and Villarreal in recent weeks.
The former Spurs full back has featured in 19 La Liga games so far this season, picking up three assists as Atleti look to finish in a Champions League spot.
Atleti's overall injury issues have eased recently, with manager Diego Simeone having plenty of options in forward areas to choose from. Joao Felix and Diego Costa are available up front, while Thomas Lemar trained on Monday. They are also hopeful that Alvaro Morata will be fit following a thigh injury picked up at the weekend.
As for Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp revealed Jordan Henderson is back and available for selection after suffering a hamstring issue during the first leg, while Andy Robertson is expected to start at left back having been rested against Bournemouth. Adrian will continue in goal in place of Alisson.
Source : 90min