Atletico Madrid will be looking to end bitter rivals Real Madrid’s perfect start to the season when both teams clash in the derby on Sunday. It has not been the best start to the campaign for Atletico and their current injury problems mean Real will fancy their chances of claiming the upper hand.
It has been a rocky start to the season for Atletico Madrid, who are currently sit seventh in La Liga. The campaign has been disrupted by fan unrest and a weird off-field battle with Barcelona involving Antoine Griezmann.
However, the major problem for Atletico Madrid appears to be a concentration of defensive injuries. A number of key players have been affected, including the likes of Jan Oblak, Jose Gimenez and Stefan Savic.
Despite these problems, Atletico Madrid appeared to be getting back on track as they are unbeaten in their last three La Liga fixtures and claimed a 4-1 victory over Celta Vigo last time out. However, Diego Simeone’s men were brought back down to earth in the Champions League, suffering a 2-0 defeat at struggling Bayer Leverkusen.
Real Madrid continue to go from strength to strength and have a 100% record across all competitions this season. They are currently two points clear at the top of La Liga and are also setting the pace in their Champions League group.
Los Blancos came from behind to earn a 4-1 win over Celta Vigo in their previous La Liga fixture with Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo on target. Carlo Ancelotti’s men followed that up with a 2-0 win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League in midweek.
The impressive thing about Real Madrid’s showings this season is they appear to have learnt to play without Karim Benzema, who remains sidelined with injury. Vinicius Junior has stepped up to the mantle, scoring in five of his last six matches.
How the bookies view it
Real Madrid have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 13/10 by 10bet to claim the win. Atletico Madrid are outsiders at home at 9/4 with SBK while a draw is set at odds of 12/5 with BoyleSports.
Recent head to head
Real Madrid have claimed three wins and a draw from the last five meetings with Atletico Madrid. Both teams won their home fixture last season with Real earning a 2-0 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu while Atletico triumphed 1-0 at the Metropolitano.
Players to watch
Alvaro Morata could be worth keeping an eye on for Atletico Madrid as he looks to get one over his former club. The striker has three goals this season and is priced at 21/10 by Paddy Power to find the net.
Vinicius Junior has become the main man for Real Madrid in the absence of Karim Benzema and appears to be relishing the responsibility. The forward has five goals in his last six matches across all competitions and is priced at 23/10 by Paddy Power to maintain his scoring run.
Anything else catch the eye?
Real Madrid have not been particularly solid at the back and given Atletico Madrid’s defensive injuries, both teams could be backed to score at 10/13 with SBK. Over 2.5 goals is valued at 10/11 with bet365 while Sport Nation is offering odds of 40/17 for over 3.5 goals.
Los Blancos are more potent in attack and given their multiple goal threats, could be backed to score first on Sunday at 20/23 with BoyleSports.
This La Liga match between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid will be played on Sep 18, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
