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Atletico Madrid midfielder Rodri Mendoza has been ruled out of both Champions League last 16 ties against Tottenham.

The Spaniard, who arrived from Elche in January, picked up an ankle issue during Saturday's 3-2 La Liga victory over Real Sociedad.

Atletico confirmed in a club statement that Mendoza had suffered a “moderate-grade sprain in his right ankle."

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Spanish reports suggest he could be out until after the international break, meaning he won't feature against Spurs both in Madrid or in London next week.

Meanwhile, Diego Simeone has been speaking about Conor Gallagher, who could square off against his former side tomorrow night at the Wanda Metropolitano.

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Gallagher left Atletico after 18 months to join the Europa League winners during the January transfer window.

Simeone said: "Conor Gallagher is a boy who worked very well with us. A footballer who can play in different positions, who gets into attacking areas. A boy who behaved very well and we have very good memories of his time at Atletico."

The Argentine also made it clear his team will not be underestimating Tottenham by any stretch, explaining: "Tottenham? When a team steps onto the pitch, they don’t think about where they are in the table or the moment they are going through. Any footballer wants to win the match. It’s like that in every team."

There are plenty of stories and narratives around this game, not least Spurs captain Cuti Romero, who was a target for Atletico last summer.

A deal did not materialise for financial reasons and Romero ended up signing a new long-term deal with Tottenham.

Atletico also have Ademola Lookman on their books following his January transfer switch from Atalanta.

Lookman was among a list of players Spurs could have moved for this winter but they instead decided to stick to their guns and refrained from strengthening their forward options.

Then of course there is the Wanda Metropolitano, where Tottenham lost the 2019 Champions League final against Liverpool under Mauricio Pochettino.

So much has changed since then but for the Spurs supporters that travel to Madrid, the city and stadium will remind them of better times, even if they did endure heartbreak that evening almost seven years ago.

Tottenham have been boosted by the returns of Djed Spence and Radu Dragusin, who both returned to training at Hotspur Way on Monday morning.

Spence has missed the past two matches while Dragusin sat out of the defeat to Crystal Palace.