The five players out of squad for Atletico v Chelsea, and the youth options called up to replace them

Atletico Madrid haven’t had the best few days, and certainly not the preparation they’d had wanted ahead of their Champions League match against Chelsea.

On Sunday, they lost 2-0 to Levante, and that was a result which came just days after a draw with the same side.

Diego Simeone’s side still find themselves at the top of La Liga, three points ahead of Real Madrid and with a game in hand over their city rivals. Monday’s edition of AS covers the struggles facing Atletico right now, and explains ‘coronavirus, sanctions, injuries, accumulation of minutes’ is having a serious impact.

Ahead of the UEFA tie, they’re facing multiple withdrawals from their squad for various reasons. Carrasco, Vrsaljko, Giménez, Herrera and Trippier have been left out of the travelling squad, and Simeone has taken 21 players.

To make up the numbers for the match against Chelsea, several youth players have been called into the ranks, and AS states those are San Román, Ricard, Álvaro and Camello.

For Chelsea it’s a good time to be facing Atletico, and Tuchel will hope his side can make the most of the situation.