La Liga: Atletico and Real Madrid face off in Madrid derby

Atletico Madrid welcomes bitter rivals Real Madrid to the Wanda Metropolitano in one of the biggest fixtures in La Liga.

Both Madrid teams are unbeaten in the league this season. Real Madrid are second in the league, with 17 points, while Atletico sit third, picking up 15 points.

These two sides have locked horns on 236 occasions throughout history. Real Madrid leads the head-to-head record, having won 116 matches to Atletico’s 59, while they have drawn 61 times.

In the league, the two rivals have met 174 times, with Real Madrid also leading with 91 league wins to Atletico’s 41, with 42 draws.

There have been nine Champions League encounters, with Real Madrid winning five of those, including the finals of the 2013-14 and 2015-16 competitions.

Los Blancos can extend its unbeaten La Liga streak to 40 games, having lost their last league game against the Rojiblancos.

Ahead of the game, Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti credited his opponents for their promising start into the season. However, he expected his boys to win the tie against their neighbours.

“Atletico Madrid are better this season than last year. They signed good players. They will fight for La Liga with us and Barcelona. We know it’s a difficult game. We can’t predict what will happen tomorrow. We have our plan, let’s see if it goes well”, He said.

Ancelotti is also sympathetic of Atletico’s playtime situation. Atleti played their midweek match on Thursday, where Real Madrid’s was on Tuesday. This means that Carlo Ancelotti’s side have had 48 hours extra to rest and prepare for the derby.

“Atleti are not happy about this. I understand their complaints. It has happened to us many times, most of them against Atletico”, he stated during his pre-match press conference.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid are without Kylian Mbappe, after the Frenchman sustained a thigh injury against Alaves, during the week.

Los Blancos already trail Barcelona by four points and with how dominant the Catalans look under Hansi Flick, Madrid cannot afford to fall even further behind.

Los Blancos will also need to improve to win the derby as Ancelotti’s side has lacked creativity and vision.

Real Madrid dominates possession without much penetration. They have only scored three first-half goals in nine fixtures this season. Their struggle to get on the scoresheet early could leave the door open for Atlético Madrid.

However, if Real Madrid wants to defeat its rivals, the defending champions need to strike early to force Atletico into an open game.

Vinicius Jr. will also look to make an impact against Atlético Madrid. The 24-year-old has yet to score a La Liga goal against Los Colchoneros.

The winger is expected to partner with fellow Brazilians, Rodrygo Goes and Endrick in the attack.