Paris — Europe’s hottest strikers from record-breaker Cristiano Ronaldo to potential heir Kylian Mbappe take centre stage this week in two tasty Champions League semifinal first legs. Ronaldo and Real will host Atletico Madrid on Tuesday and Mbappe’s Monaco will welcome Juventus the next evening as Europe’s biggest club competition approaches its climax. Revenge will be on the menu at the Santiago Bernabeu for Atletico and their feisty Argentine coach Diego Simeone, while in Antoine Griezmann they have one of the deadliest marksmen around. Atletico will be desperate to banish the memories of gut-wrenching Champions League final defeats in 2014 and 2016 to their city rivals. They have lost Jose Maria Gimenez to a groin injury, so three key defenders will miss the short trip across town. Simeone’s side are in fine attacking form — a Kevin Gameiro double sealed a 5-0 rout over Las Palmas at the weekend.
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