FC Barcelona host La Liga title rivals Atlético Madrid on Matchday 5
Barcelona have a key early season fixture against Atlético Madrid in what should be a feisty midweek match. From previous first-hand experience I can tell you that there will be a great atmosphere for this match.
Form
This match is an important early season indicator for both teams. Going in to this Barcelona are looking relatively strong with their brief blip against Alavés being the only negative. Atlético have similar form because they had a slow start to the season with two draws, but seem to have found their rhythm going in to this match. Both teams have been finding the net frequently as well with Barcelona scoring thirteen goals in the last three games, and Atlético scoring ten in their last three matches.
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Squads
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Barcelona have one major injury with Samuel Umtiti picking up a knee injury in training on Tuesday. Umtiti was close to overtaking Javier Mascherano in the first team, so this will be a blow for him personally. Atlético on the other hand have injuries to Miguel Moyà and Tiago Mendes. It won’t be too much of an issue though because both players lost their status as first team players last season anyway. Therefore, both managers have strong squads to choose from for the match.
Photo by Guillermo Martinez/Corbis via Getty Images.
History
Recent history is littered with Barcelona wins. However, Atlético have been the only team in the last three years to knock Barça out of the Champions League doing it not once, but twice. The last game between the two was the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals which Atlético won 2-0, with an aggregate scoreline of 3-2 to them, so Barcelona will be looking for revenge. This adds an interesting edge to an already exciting match because when the M-S-N trio are looking for revenge it usually doesn’t end well for the opposition.
Atlético have become a force to be reckoned with under Diego Simeone with a La Liga title and two Champions Final appearances being the high points. In the league last season, Barça won both games with a scoreline of 2-1 in each. The last time Atlético actually beat Barcelona in the league was 2010, so the history favours the Catalans.
Photo by Albert Llop/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.
Playing Style
The style of football that Simeone favors is focused on defensive discipline with counter-attacks being favoured over possession football. It is sometimes called ‘anti-football‘ by detractors, but the contrast in style certainly causes entertaining matchups. There is also the point that it gets the best out of his team even though it favors results over aesthetics with it often being on the borderline of what is allowed in football. Looking at recent results, Atlético’s attack is looking stronger than usual due to the addition of Kévin Gameiro upfront.
The match should follow the pattern of Barcelona dominating the possession with them basically camped in the opposition half. Los Rojiblancos are likely to press high up the pitch at the beginning of both halves in order to grab an early goal. They did this in the fixture at Camp Nou last season with it being successful because Koke scored an early goal, but Barcelona were able to overturn it. Therefore, Barcelona’s defense needs to be confident under pressure especially during the early stages.
The main threat for Barça is Antoine Griezmann due to the mixture of playmaking ability, and quality in front of the net which he possesses. The key aspect from the Blaugrana viewpoint is getting the ball to the M-S-N trio in order for them to break apart the hardened Atlético defense. The ridiculous statistics that the trident have generated makes it likely that they will score, so Barcelona should win, but it won’t be a comfortable margin. A real team effort is crucial if Barça want to hinder Atlético’s title hopes, and emphasize their own title credentials.
Prediction: Barcelona 2-1 Atlético
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