Simeone concerned about Bayer Leverkusen’s set-piece threat [divider]
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has revealed that he is concerned about his Champions League Last 16 opposition Bayer Leverkusen’s threat from set-pieces.
“This is an important game against an opponent that plays really well, a team who are very fast in midfield and go forward with a lot of variants, especially when it comes to dead-ball situations close to the area,” Simeone told Goal.
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Bayer set-piece specialist Hakan Çalhanoğlu was recently included in the Bild‘s Top 10 Best Bundesliga free-kick taker list.
Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola recently rated Çalhanoğlu as one of the best free-kick takers in the Bundesliga.
“Çalhanoğlu is one of the best free-kick takers in the Bundesliga,” Guardiola told Hurriyet.
Çalhanoğlu has scored seven direct free-kicks in the Bundesliga in his career despite being just 21-years-old.
The 21-year-old was named best young player of the 2013/14 season by leading German football magazine 11 Freunde.
Bayer have had 33 scoring chances from set-pieces in the Bundesliga and 26 were created by the Turkish international.
The Champions League Last 16 first-leg between Atleti and Bayer will be played in Germany on Wednesday.
