La Liga: Barca vs Atleti is Box Office Stuff!

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid

First plays third at the Camp Nou on Sunday in the Spanish clash of the weekend and, with nine games to go, points are at a premium.  

La Liga: Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid is not a title race showdown but it matters a whole lot to both teams as the Blaugrana can strengthen their lead at the top to 14 points, while Los Rojiblancos can put a similar gap between themselves and Real Sociedad in fourth. Xavi’s Barca are looking to get back to winning ways after drawing away to Getafe last time out while Diego Simeone’s Atleti are hoping to continue a winning streak after beating Almeria.

The Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid betting odds are pointing to a home win but this will be no walk in the park for the Catalans.

Talking Points

Dembele set for Barca return  

Xavi was quite relaxed following Barcelona’s recent draw with Girona, but after making it back to back goalless draws against Getafe he will be keen to see that his team’s 11 point lead over Real Madrid doesn’t shrink, and hopefully extends. And the reports that France star Ousmane Dembele is fit to return is good news for the boss and his team. The winger has been out with a hamstring injury since January and Xavi is almost certain to re-introduce him now to help see his team over the line.

Barcelona were knocked out of the Copa del Rey earlier this month though league form has held up in Dembele’s absence, but his return is sure to make a difference, particularly for star striker Robert Lewandowski. With Dembele alongside him the prolific Pole has scored 22 goals in 23 games but he has only scored five in 13 without him. Lewi is at SBOTOP odds of 1.22 to win the Golden Boot, with 17 goals to his name, three more than Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema, and this is a timely boost.

Elsewhere, midfield ace Pedri is nearing a return after suffering a hamstring injury, but this game may come too soon for him and Sergi Roberto will be sidelined after picking up his own hamstring strain against Getafe. There is better news from Frenkie de Jong who was injured before the international break; he is fit and ready to slot in to the midfield.     

Depay delay for Atletico

Former Barcelona star Memphis Depay looks set to miss out. He’s another player with a hamstring problem, picked up in March, and he was hoping to be ready to face his former team; but it looks like his return will be delayed and so Simeone needs to pick the right forward to partner his best attacking player, Antoine Griezmann. He is likely to go for Alvaro Morata who has scored ten goals and made two assists, while Angel Correa will either start in a wide position or on the bench.         

Griezmann has been in red hot form, with 11 goals and nine assists this season, and that after his appearances were restricted at the beginning of the campaign. He scored a brace in the 2-1 win over Almeria and will be hoping to lead Atleti to a long awaited win at the Camp Nou.

At the other end of the pitch, defender Stefan Savic is out, so Mario Hermoso will continue alongside Jose Gimenez at the heart of Atleti’s defence. Hermoso was on target in Los Rojiblancos’ last away match, a short trip to play Rayo Vallecano, which they won 2-1, while Gimenez put through his own net the following week against Almeria!   

History

With 33 victories to 18 the Blaugrana are well clear in the head to head encounters, but while the historic Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid results are in the hosts’ favour, the visitors are in slightly better form, with five wins and one defeat from the last six games, while Barca have won three, drawn two and lost one.

The two teams last met in January when Barca won 1-0 in Madrid thanks to a Dembele goal but, in a feisty affair, both teams ended up with ten men, Atleti’s Savic and Barca’s Ferran Torres both seeing red in injury time. Los Rojiblancos have gone unbeaten since losing their home match and will be desperate to get some revenge on Sunday. But if they do they will be making some history.

Simeone’s men face a Barcelona side which is unbeaten in the league at home, with 11 wins and three draws and they have conceded just twice at the Camp Nou this season. And Atletico Madrid have not won away to Barca on their last 22 visits.    

Betting Tip

Barcelona are odds on at 1.94 to win this game, with the draw at 3.25 and Atleti at 3.30 and, if anything, I would favour a home win. But I’m going for an entertaining and hard fought match with a couple of goals. Atleti may score the third away goal at the Camp Nou this term, but I don’t see them getting a long awaited win.

 

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