La Liga | Gameweek 23

Feb 8, 2025 at 8pm UK

Estadio Santiago Bernabeu

Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid

Match preview

To be fair, Real Madrid haven't quite hit their stride this season, but Carlo Ancelotti's team are still top of the La Liga table, through to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and getting ready for a Champions League playoff against Manchester City.

They got into the last four of the cup on Wednesday with a 3-2 win against Leganes, thanks to Gonzalo Garcia's first goal for the club, which got them a last-gasp victory. They'll be heading to Man City next week for the first leg of their Champions League playoff fixture at the Etihad Stadium.

But Los Blancos can't afford to get complacent in La Liga, especially after being stunned last weekend when they lost 1-0 to struggling Espanyol. The capital giants are now only one point ahead of second-placed Atletico at the top.

There are only four points between third-placed Barcelona and division leaders Real Madrid in what is a really exciting title race. Los Blancos have already suffered a huge home loss to a title rival this term, conceding four to Barcelona back in October.

The last two league meetings between Real Madrid and Atlético finished 1-1, including at Wanda Metropolitano back in September, and that was also the score in their league contest at the Bernabeu last season.

Not many thought Atlético were going to be real contenders for the La Liga title this season, but it's been an awesome campaign for the Red and Whites so far. They're through to the knockout round of the Champions League and also in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.

Simeone's team absolutely thrashed Getafe 5-0 on Tuesday night to secure a spot in the last four of the cup, and they also beat Mallorca 2-0 last weekend to reach 48 La Liga points. That's 14 wins, six draws and two losses from 22 matches.

Atletico have picked up 18 points on their travels this season, and they'll be coming up against a Real Madrid side that have won nine of their 10 league matches at Bernabeu during the 2024-25 campaign.

The Red and Whites have won the La Liga title 11 times, with their last success coming in 2020-21, and they need to keep winning if they want to be seen as potential title winners.

Atletico have actually not lost in their last four league matches with Real Madrid and have only lost one of their last six, although Simeone's team haven't won a La Liga match at Bernabeu since February 2016.

Recent Performance

Real Madrid La Liga form:DWWWWL

Real Madrid form (all competitions):WWWWLW

Atletico Madrid La Liga form:WWWLDW

Atletico Madrid form (all competitions):LWDWWW

Team News

Madrid will have Mbappé, Bellingham, Lucas Vázquez and Camavinga for the derby, which is great news for the club.

Mbappé, Bellingham and Vazquéz sat out against Leganés due to minor issues, while Camavinga wasn't ready to return from a hamstring problem, but all four are available for selection this weekend.

Antonio Rudiger will be out for at least the next couple of weeks with a thigh problem, and Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal are long-term absentees for the club due to serious knee injuries. David Alaba is also facing more time out with a muscular problem, so it is expected to be Aurelien Tchouameni and Raul Asencio in the middle of the Real Madrid defence for the Madrid derby.

Atletico have a few injury concerns, with Robin Le Normand suspended for the match, but the visitors are otherwise in great shape, with Pablo Barrios back training with the group after a recent issue.

Alexander Sorloth has scored 11 times for Atletico this season, but he's expected to start on the bench on Saturday. Antoine Griezmann and Julian Alvarez, who have 15 and 16 goals respectively in 2024-25, are set to feature as the front two.

There'll be changes from the side that started in the last Copa del Rey, with Jan Oblak back between the sticks, while Clement Lenglet, Marcos Llorente and Conor Gallagher should also be introduced into the XI at Bernabeu.

Possible starting lineup

Real Madrid possible starting lineup:

Courtois; Vazquez, Tchouameni, Asencio, Mendy; Valverde, Camavinga; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius; Mbappe

Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:

Oblak; Llorente, Gimenez, Lenglet, Galan; Simeone, De Paul, Barrios, Gallagher; Alvarez, Griezmann