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• Simeone wary of PSG threat but calm about Atleti's Champions League struggles

  Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone is wary of the challenge his team will face against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, despite the French giants' Champions League travails.

  Atletico and PSG have both struggled in the competition's new-look league phase, with Los Colchoneros taking three points from three matches to sit one behind PSG.

  They have won nine of their 16 fixtures against French opposition in Europe's elite club competition but have never crossed paths with Ligue 1's most successful side.

  "I didn't know that," Simeone told reporters when that face was highlighted at Tuesday's pre-match press conference. 

  "We need to stay calm, compete like in every match and do our best.

  "I love the way PSG play, they have a very good game, they are dynamic and are marked by their coach.

  "They have young, dynamic players, who we don't know where they're going to go, and some fixed points to pin people down in defence. From there they can grow.

  "They have a lot of guys moving around in different positions from midfield and they play the kind of football that Luis Enrique has always played."

  Atletico are coming off two defeats against Lille (3-1) and Benfica (4-0) after they won their Champions League opener 2-1 against RB Leipzig.

  "It is still early, we are just starting, the season is long and the numbers are done at the end," Simeone said.

  "It is normal to be worried, but we have to wait for the objectives, to be able to give a correct opinion. It will be a tough match, that is for sure."

  Atletico will face the French champions without suspended defender Jose Maria Gimenez as well as Robin Le Normand, who continues to recover after a clash of heads with Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni in their 1-1 derby draw last month.

  "We have quite a few casualties in the defence," Simeone added.

  "The team is competing and trying to find the tools to compete as that's what we have to do. We will try to do it in the best way with the boys who will have to come on." 

• Inzaghi expecting Arsenal reaction after Newcastle defeat

  Inter boss Simone Inzaghi is expecting a difficult test against "one of the best teams in Europe" when Arsenal visit the San Siro in the Champions League on Wednesday. 

  Arsenal come into the encounter against the reigning Serie A champions on the back of a defeat to Newcastle United in the Premier League last weekend. 

  Mikel Arteta's side have now lost two of their last three league games, having tasted defeat just once in their 25 games in the top-flight (W21 D3) in 2024. 

  But Inzaghi, who helped Inter keep pace at the Serie A summit with a controversial 1-0 win over Venezia, is expecting a reaction from the Gunners. 

  "We are facing one of the best teams in Europe, very recognisable with a great coach," Inzaghi said.

  "We all know how the big teams react after a defeat. Look at us after the derby... You find teams out for redress.

  "I saw the match between Arsenal and Newcastle. Playing at Newcastle's home is not easy, but it was an open and fascinating match.

  "We will find a team that lost two-and-a-half days ago, they will want to play a great game at San Siro."

  Inter lost the Derby della Madonnina 2-1 to Milan in September, but have since gone on to win seven of their eight games in all competitions. 

  Inzaghi's side are just ahead of Arsenal in the Champions League table, with both teams picking up seven points from their opening three games. 

  The two sides have only met previously in the 2003-04 Champions League – both games were away wins (Arsenal 0-3 Inter, Inter 1-5 Arsenal).

  While history favours the visiting side, Inzaghi has said his side will try to dominate possession against Arsenal in order to remain unbeaten in the competition. 

  "If you see Arsenal among 100 teams, without knowing the name, you recognise them. They played for the last two English titles, point for point with Manchester City," he said.

  "We will have to try to keep the ball as much as possible, we know that we are facing a team that put on a lot of offensive pressure.

  "We know that it will be a problem for us when they have the ball but the opposite is also true."

  Arsenal have also struggled in recent games in the Champions League in Italy, failing to find the back of the net in their last four away games in the country. 

  Emmanuel Adebayor was the last Gunners player to score there in a 2-0 win over Milan in March 2008, and Inter will be confident of keeping it that way. 

  Although only five teams have faced more shots in the Champions League this season than Inter (53), they have kept three clean sheets so far.

• Luis Enrique in awe of Simeone energy ahead of reunion

  Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique was full of praise for his former rival Diego Simeone as he prepares to go head-to-head with the Atletico Madrid boss in the Champions League.

  PSG and Atletico, who reached the semi-finals and the quarter-finals respectively last season, will face off on Wednesday having both won just one of their three league-phase games.

  A home victory would boost PSG, currently 19th with four points, while Atletico, languishing in 27th on three, are aiming to recover from back-to-back losses.

  PSG have never faced Atletico in the Champions League before but Luis Enrique's Barcelona defeated Simeone's Atletico side nine times in their 14 meetings between 2014 and 2017, drawing twice and losing three times.

  Luis Enrique led Barca to a Champions League and LaLiga double in 2014-15 followed by another league title the following year.

  "We've played against each other as players and then as managers. I admire Simeone, when a coach can stay for so many years at a top club it means he is great because that is such a difficult thing to do," Luis Enrique told reporters on Tuesday.

  Simeone has managed Atletico for 13 years, guiding them to two LaLiga titles and two Europa League crowns, though the Madrid side had considered hiring Luis Enrique prior to Simeone's arrival.

  "I had given my word to another club. If I had gone to Atleti, I would not have stayed half as long as Simeone because I don't have the energy as him," added Luis Enrique.

  "They are lucky to have found Simeone as a coach. You need a lot of energy, to be able to convince all your players over the long-term."

  PSG, having lost Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid in the close season, have just two goals in their three Champions League games, beating Girona 1-0 but drawing 1-1 with PSV and losing 2-0 at Arsenal.

  "I have no doubt we can improve in defence and attack, whether it is with the defender duos of Marquinhos and Willian Pacho, or Milan Skriniar and Lucas Beraldo, or in the midfield," Luis Enrique said.

  "I understand you want to discuss individual players, but we analyse things from a broader perspective.

  "What interests me is to always generate goalscoring opportunities and to arrive in the penalty area because you have managed to be stronger than your opponent.

  "That is my objective as a coach: to always generate opportunities."

   

  Close-season signing Matvey Safonov, who kept a clean sheet in their opening win against Girona, might replace number one goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, whose mistakes proved costly at Arsenal and against PSV.

  "You will find out tomorrow. After a good cup of cappuccino, I will decide who the goalkeeper is," Luis Enrique said.