Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone praised Stuttgart’s strong start to the current Champions League campaign ahead of Tuesday’s clash.
The Bundesliga outfit are fourth in the table having won their opening two games against Viking and Slovan Bratislava.
Despite losing 2-1 to Liverpool in their Champions League opener, Atletico bounced back with a 2-0 win over Manchester United last Tuesday and are currently on a six-game winning run in all competitions, but Simeone warned of the dangers Stuttgart can pose.
“I’m forgetting what happened (in previous matches), that doesn’t matter. We’ll be judged by what we do tomorrow. We’re facing a very strong team that has started the Champions League very well,” Simeone told a press conference, in quotes reported on the UEFA website.
“We’re facing a tough match against a physically strong team, one that clearly understands the concept of pressing in the opponent’s half, almost always man-to-man, and that drops very deep when it has to defend.”
Atletico defender David Hancko also revealed the team are using last season as motivation to improve this year.
They were beaten on penalties by Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final in April and were within touching distance of reaching the Champions League final in May, but lost 2-1 on aggregate to Arsenal before finishing fourth in LaLiga.
“The feeling from last season is that we were so close to achieving so much: the cup, the Champions League,” Hancko said.
“We were left with the feeling of reaching the end but not quite making it. We’re using that experience to improve this year.”