LaLiga title contenders Atletico Madrid are looking to bounce back and maybe restart their chase of rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid, and it could all start with a win against Valencia at Wanda Metropolitano Stadium on Saturday. Last season Valencia managed to hold Atletico to a 1-1 draw at home, but then lost the reverse fixture 3-2 in Madrid. Atletico Madrid have won their last four home matches against Valencia and four of the last six overall. Valencia have not beaten Atletico since 2014.
Atletico Madrid have been struggling to build winning streaks this season, they have only lost one match in all competitions but haven't been able to win back-to-back matches since August. Before the international break they recorded two consecutive goalless draws in LaLiga, against Real Madrid and Valladolid, either side of a 2-0 victory at Lokomotiv Moscow in the UEFA Champions League. Head coach Diego Simeone can count on both Alvaro Morata and Diego Costa upfront, while Joao Felix could play in a deeper role. Sime Vrsaljko and Stefan Savic are out injured.
Valencia are hoping to achieve a second consecutive top-four finish, even though they had a rather poor start to the season. However, now they are unbeaten in their last four matches in LaLiga and they have won the last two, 1-0 at Athletic Bilbao and 2-1 over Alaves. In the Champions League they started very well with a 1-0 victory at Chelsea, but then got hammered 3-0 at home by Ajax. Cristiano Piccini is injured for the visitors, while Jose Gaya is a doubt.
Probable line-ups:
Atletico: Oblak - Trippier, Felipe, Gimenez, Lodi - Felix, Koke, Partey, Niguez - D. Costa, Morata
Valencia: Cillessen - Wass, Garay, Paulista, J. Costa - Parejo, Coquelin, Kondogbia - Moreno, Gameiro, Cheryshev
My prediction:
Valencia have been recording good results in the league lately, but Atletico Madrid are very strong at home and I believe Diego Simeone's men will grab a 2-1 win here.
Here are the odds for this match at NetBet:
Atletico win - 1.61
Draw - 3.85
Valencia win - 6.00
Your feedback
Please enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
