Bayer Leverkusen vs. Atlético Madrid, 2016 Champions League draw: Rojiblancos favorites in Round of 16

Atlético Madrid has morphed into the UEFA Champions League’s most consistent team under the management of Diego Simeone, and they’ll expect to make at least the quarterfinals for yet another season. Bayer Leverkusen has the talent to present a significant challenge to the Rojiblancos, but Atléti enter the knockout rounds as a big favorite after a convincing group stage performance.

Jürgen Klopp is the face of the gegenpressing style of soccer around the world, while Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel have become known for using elements of the style, as well. But if there’s one high-tempo, counter-pressing purist at the top level of the sport, it’s Bayer Leverkusen’s Roger Schmidt.

There has perhaps never been a boring Bayer Leverkusen game since Schmidt has taken charge. Even the 0-0 draws are wild, fast affairs with space for each team to attack into. He employs a group of young, athletic, technically gifted, and ultimately calamitous defenders. His midfielders never give opponents time on the ball. And poacher “Chicharito” Javier Hernandez is the chaotic system’s perfect striker. They are capable of winning or losing any game 4-0, though they win quite a bit more often than they lose.

Is Bayer Leverkusen a *good* team? Maybe, maybe not. But do we wish there were more teams like them? Absolutely.

How they got here: They’re here because they were better than the aforementioned Pochettino and Tottenham. Bayer finished three points ahead of Spurs after beating them at White Hart Lane during the fourth round of play. Bayer took four points from Monaco, too, but strangely, couldn’t get the job done against CSKA Moscow.

Key player: There hasn’t been one particular standout star for Leverkusen this season, possibly because almost everyone has had some kind of minor injury, leading to some serious rotation. But with chances likely to come few and far between against Atléti, they might need some spectacular set pieces from Hakan Çalhanoğlu to go through.

Even if Simeone is the best coach in the world, a downturn always seems like an inevitable thing for Atlético Madrid. Their budget isn’t growing at the rate of their rivals, while leaders Diego Godin and Gabi fail to stop the passage of time from slowing down their bodies. Yet, Atléti are where we’ve come to expect to see them. Still in the Champions League knockout stage, still a top-three team in La Liga.

Atléti have been finalists in two of the last three editions of the Champions League, though they’ve failed to win the competition, falling to local rivals Real Madrid on both occasions. This year’s team features most of the same faces and the same counterattacking style of play, with Simeone counting on improvement from young players to carry his team to new heights. Saul, Lucas and Yannick Carrasco have all stepped up their games and can now be trusted to deliver in the big matches.

How they got here: They haven’t been at their best domestically this year, but Simeone’s men accomplished a pretty incredible feat in Europe, finishing ahead of Bayern Munich in the group stage. Atléti lost their last game to the Bavarians, but only after they’d somehow clinched the group after just five games. The Rojiblancos’ 1-0 victory over Bayern was exactly what we’ve come to expect from them: they only had 37 percent possession, but everyone agreed Atléti was the far superior side.

Key player: Antoine Griezmann, who’s broken into an elite group over the last year. He’s earned the privilege to show up at awards galas as the third-best attacking player in the world, behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He’s not scoring as many goals this year, but has become better at attracting double teams before setting up his teammates.

Bayer Leverkusen might be able to break Atléti out of their defensive shell and create a fun tie, but it’s not like the Rojiblancos can’t win a chaotic game just as easily as they can win a controlled one. Expect an Atléti victory.