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As far as rude awakenings go, Real Madrid couldn’t have had a worse result than the one they were handed in mid-week. On Wednesday evening at the Ramon Sanchez Piizjuan Stadium, Madrid was ambushed by Sevilla and was already down by three goals before the half-time. Julen Lopetegui knows that his team cannot afford another performance like that, having seen their lead cut down at the top.
Atletico Madrid, on the other hand, eased to a 3-0 win over Huesca in mid-week, bringing them back into the title race. Having been written off the title race only a week ago, Atletico is back in the thick of it having been behind by 5 points.
Instead, ahead of their clash against Real Madrid, Simeone’s men will be refreshed and high on confidence. Atletico can sense vulnerability when it comes to opponents and with both the top teams, Barcelona and Real Madrid going through a shifty patch of form, this might be Los Rojiblancos’ chance to take advantage of it.
Kickoff information
Date: 30th September
Kickoff time: 20:45 (local time), 12:15 AM (IST – 30th September)
Live Stream: Live on LaLiga's Facebook page (Indian sub-continent only) - https://www.facebook.com/LaLiga/
Venue: Santiago Bernabeu
Team News
Real Madrid
Questions over Marcelo continue to pop up this season. The Brazilian, one of the longest-serving players of Madrid was run ragged by the likes of Navas and Andre Silva in mid-week and had to be substituted towards the latter part of the game which looked like a possible injury. That aside, the team is also feeling the fatigue of the World Cup excursions, with Modric, currently the best player in the world also complaining of being drained.
However, the “El Derbi” is a question of reputation and bragging rights and Los Blancos wouldn’t also want to concede ground in the race for the title. That said, Lopetegui will hope for an improved performance from the personnel he names for this game. Exhaustion as a factor has already been dismissed and ahead of this game, the former Spanish team coach dismissed the issue of an extra day’s rest of his opponents.
Atletico Madrid
Juanfran is expected to return to the starting line-up and Lucas Hernandez is expected to take Filipe Luis’s place. Los Rojiblancos having made an unsteady start to their season have quietly and efficiently hauled themselves back in the reckoning for the title.
The likes of Costa, Griezmann, and Lemar have given a new and dynamic attacking style. Add to that the likes of Gelson Martins and Atletico can seem like a four-pronged monster when they unleash their attackers.
Simeone, who has been at the helm for a while now understands how to get the best out of this group of players and has been faithful in his agenda of making the club as true title contenders.
For years, Atletico was considered too inferior to challenge the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona. But since the Argentine’s arrival, there has been a major change in the way Atletico approaches the game. Atletico will be expected to take the game to Madrid and given the current run of form, one wouldn’t be surprised if Costa ends up bullying the likes of Varane and Ramos.
Probable Line-ups
Real Madrid (4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Nacho; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Bale, Benzema, Asensio
Atletico Madrid (4-4-2): Oblak; Juanfran, Gimenez, Godin, Lucas Hernandez; Saul, Koke, Rodri, Lemar; Diego Costa, Griezmann
Form Guide
Last 5 matches in all competitions
Real Madrid: L-W-W-D-W
Atletico Madrid: W-W-W-D-L
Key Players
Real Madrid
Modric will be expected to run the game against a mid-field contains the likes of Saul, Koke in the opponent line-up. Alongside him, Benzema and Bale will have to step up their game. Asensio has drifted in and out of the game, this season. At times irrepressible and at times just wandering around on the pitch has made the crowd favourite an enigma.
Against Atletico, Lopetegui will expect from him as he looks to get Los Blancos back to winning ways. Benzema has stepped up this season but in recent games hasn’t been able to be as clinical as he would have liked. Bale continued his resurgence and should have really had a goal in midweek having been denied exquisitely by the Seville keeper.
Madrid arguably is going to miss Isco, whose scuttling runs tend to cause havoc for defences. Lopetegui may rely on the trio of Kroos, Casemiro, and Modric to give his team the control he desires in mid-field.
Atletico Madrid
The usual suspects are the likes of Costa and Griezmann, with Lemar expected to provide support. The midfield isn’t too shabby wither with Saul and Koke expected to pull the strings. However, one area where Atletico can relax is their goal-keeper, Oblak, who has been in superb form from since the start of the season.
Oblak has quietly become one of the mainstays of this team alongside the likes of Godin and will once again have to be at his best if he is to deny the attackers of Los Blancos.
Prediction
The derby always throws up interesting scenarios and the twist of local pride will make it an entertaining encounter to watch. That said, one can expect a stuttered start before the game opens up to a livelier affair.
Predicted Score: 2-2
