Football
Dermot Corrigan, Madrid correspondent 8y

Fernando Torres to start vs. Bayern Munich - Atletico boss Diego Simeone

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has confirmed that veteran striker Fernando Torres will start Wednesday's Champions League Group D game at home to Bayern Munich.

Torres, 32, has started just one match so far this season -- but he did score twice off the bench against Sporting Gijon recently, and again as a substitute set up the equaliser in the 1-1 draw at Barcelona last week.

The former Liverpool and Chelsea player featured in both Atletico's meetings with Bayern in last year's UCL semifinals -- missing a penalty in the second leg in Munich -- and the Colchoneros coach told a news conference at the Estadio Vicente Calderon that El Nino would again be picked for Wednesday's game.

"Fernando is an important player when there are spaces to attack, and for the job we need to do tomorrow," Simeone said. "So he will start the game."

Atletico just about squeezed through on away goals after two hugely dramatic legs against Bayern in last year's semifinals. Simeone said he thought that the team likely to face this time around was even stronger.

"The players are almost the same, possibly a bit stronger with [David] Alaba and [Franck] Ribery on the left who connect well going forward," he said. "The arrival of [Mats] Hummels brings experience, height and leadership. Plus all the brilliant players they have -- so they are a very complete squad. It will be very similar to the recent game, collectively and individually they are very important players."

Bayern's style of play is likely to be different, Simeone predicted, given Carlo Ancelotti had replaced Pep Guardiola as coach last summer.

"They are both dangerous," he said. "Before there were the organised movements in attack to try and look for numerical superiority.

"And now they are more direct and using individual brilliance. I see it as just as difficult this way as the other."

Simeone knows Ancelotti well from their many meetings when the Italian was in charge from 2013 to 2015 across town at Real Madrid, and the Argentine accepted that the coaches were quite different in the character they showed on the sideline during games.

"I have great respect and admiration for Carlo -- the person and coach he is, and has shown over his career," he said. "We met as players, when I was young and he was a great player.

"Everyone has their own personality, some show it outside, others keep it inside. Neither is better or worse -- everyone does what they think is best. But the most important thing is the atmosphere, and the players."

Simeone added that he was a big fan of the German mentality, when it came to football.

"I have pointed to German football as an example to follow," he said.

"I admire the character of the Germans, the consistency, insistence and persistence they have always had, in football, which is what is important to us. I love how the Germans think."

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