As Liverpool prepare to kick off their 2025/26 Champions League campaign, welcoming Atletico Madrid to Anfield on Wednesday night, we crunch the numbers on this fixture…
Liverpool failed to win each of their first four UEFA Champions League games against Atlético Madrid between 2008 and 2020 (D2 L2), but won home and away against them in the last campaign when they faced (2021-22 in the group stage).
Since eliminating Liverpool from the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League with wins home and away in the last 16 (4-2 on aggregate), Atlético Madrid have only won one of their last eight matches against English sides in the competition (D2 L5), winning 1-0 at Manchester United in March 2022.
Arne Slot has faced Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid on two previous occasions in Europe, losing home (1-3) and away (2-3) against them in the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League group stage. Despite conceding six goals and scoring just three, Slot’s Feyenoord had a higher xG (3.6 – 2.1) and more shots (29 – 16) across the two meetings combined.
Liverpool finished top of the league phase in the 2024-25 edition, winning the most games and most points of any side (P8 W7 D0 L1 – 21 points). They won all four of their league phase matches at Anfield by an aggregate score of 10-1, including a win over then reigning champions Real Madrid (2-0).
Mohamed Salah has scored more goals (44) and made more assists (17) than any other Liverpool player in the UEFA Champions League. If he features here, he will also move into outright second for most appearances for the Reds in the competition, overtaking Steven Gerrard (73), and trailing only Jamie Carragher (80).
Of centre back duos or trios with 5+ starts in the UEFA Champions League last season, Liverpool duo Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate had the highest clean sheet percentage of any partnership (71% – 5/7).
