Atlético Madrid host Barcelona in a crunch fixture that headlines this weekend’s action in LaLiga. Barça lead the league with 73 points, four ahead of Real Madrid and they’ll want to keep that gap going as we enter the business end of the season. Atlético, meanwhile, are fourth on 57, one behind Villarreal and will have eyes on getting one over on a team they will face twice more in the Champions League over the next fortnight.
Here’s everything you need to know about the match:
How to watch
The match will be broadcast on Saturday night on Disney+ in the UK, ESPN in the U.S., FanCode in India and DAZN in Australia. You can also follow ESPN’s live updates.
Key Details
Kick-off time: Saturday, Apr 4 at 8 p.m. GMT (4 p.m. ET; 12.30 a.m. IST; and 7.00 a.m. AEDT)
Venue: Metropolitano, Madrid
Referee: TBC
VAR: TBC
Team news
Atlético Madrid: Musso, Molina, Le Normand, Lenglet, Giuliano, Koke, Obed Vargas, Baena, Nico, Almada, Griezmann
Barcelona: Joan García, Cancelo, Araújo, Cubarsí, Gerard Martín, Eric, Pedri, Lamine Yamal, Fermín, Olmo, Rashford
Talking Points
Expect goals
You think of Diego Simeone and goals aren’t the first thing that come to mind — but that’s a stereotype that Simeone has set about dismantling recently. Playing an expansive style of football, his Atlético teams have looked decidedly less fortress-like at the back and more compelling going forward in the recent past. This is especially true when they face an opponent willing to go all out in attack: which is exactly what Hansi Flick’s Barcelona do, every single game.
With their extremely high line, Barcelona invite more trouble than any major team in Europe, but also pose more of it going forward — squeezing their opponents into their own defensive third, committing multiple runners forward and never settling for a narrow margin. It has sometimes worked to their detriment under Flick, but more often than not, it’s a strategy that’s paid off.
Combine this with Atlético’s new found love of adventure, and you should expect goals on Saturday, lots of them. After all, their past eight head-to-heads have produced 32 goals!
The Griezmann factor
This will be the first game Antoine Griezmann plays for Atlético after announcing he will leave the club this summer after a decade (across two spells): he leave as the club’s top scorer of all time (211 goals), and is fourth in their list of all time appearances.
His influence has waned this season — he’s 15th in Atlético’s most minutes played in LaLiga this season, compared to fourth last season — with Simeone transitioning to a post-Griezmann life by relying on his squad’s attacking depth and variety, but he remains a big factor in big games. He started both legs of the Copa del Rey semifinal against Barca recently and he’ll expect to start this Saturday in what promises to be an emotional night for club and club legend.
Expect him to be a big factor.
Can Marcus Rashford replicate Raphinha’s influence?
Raphinha is the glue that holds Barcelona’s sensational attack together: his pressing sets the tone and his directness and eye for a decisive contribution in the final third provides the balance the attack needs. He is, though, set for a spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury he picked up while away with Brazil — and that means Barca will lean on Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford to man that left flank.
Rashford started the season brightly, setting up goals aplenty (and scoring freely in the UEFA Champions League), but has looked off the boil after a combination of Raphinha’s return and a few minor injuries and illnesses. Barca will want him to rediscover that early form with a series of crunch matches coming up, starting with the Atlético game.
The home side, though, will be most wary of the man on the other flank…
Can Atletico stop Lamine Yamal?
Lamine Yamal leads Barcelona’s scoring and assist charts with 14 goals, 9 assists in LaLiga. He also has an X-factor that stats can’t quite capture: ball at feet, he appears capable of doing anything, beating anyone and producing just what’s needed in the final third.
After a slow start to the season, Yamal has burst into life over the past couple of months and as Newcastle United found out the hard way, one odd quiet game doesn’t mean he won’t rip you apart in the very next one. He is, though, yet to score against Atlético this season — a combination of Matteo Ruggeri and Dávid Hancko keeping the young man quiet this season. That’s a record he’ll want to redress on priority.
Familiar foes
The two sides have already met each other three times this season (Barca won 3-1 in the league, Atlético won the Copa Del Rey semifinal first leg 4-0, Barca won the second leg 3-0). They will now face off on Saturday before facing each other on April 8 and 14 for two legs of a blockbuster Champions League semifinal.
This match, then, has implications beyond just the league: with the winners taking considerable momentum into their European campaign. Who will seize that advantage on Saturday?
