Preview: Atletico Madrid vs Girona - prediction, team news, lineups

Atletico Madrid will be aiming to make it successive wins in Spain's top flight when they welcome a Girona team that are still in danger of being relegated from La Liga this season.

Diego Simeone's side are fourth in the La Liga table, three points behind third-placed Villarreal, while Girona are 15th, one point ahead of 18th-placed Mallorca.

Match preview

Atletico returned to winning ways on Tuesday evening, beating Osasuna 2-1, with the result leaving them fourth in the table on 66 points, three points behind third-placed Villarreal.

The Red and Whites have only finished outside of the top three in Spain's top flight once since 2011-12, while Simeone's side have been nowhere near the title this term, so it has been a disappointing campaign from a domestic point of view, especially as they were also beaten in the final of the Copa del Rey by Real Sociedad.

Atletico have secured Champions League football for next season, and they will be aiming to end their La Liga campaign with victories over Girona and Villarreal, which could be enough to claim third in the division ahead of the Yellow Submarine.

Simeone's team, who were beaten by Arsenal in the semi-finals of the Champions League, have picked up 43 points from their 18 home league matches this season.

Earlier this season, Atletico recorded a 3-0 victory over Girona in the reverse match, and the Red and Whites have now won their last four games against Sunday's opponents.

Girona have only beaten Atletico on one previous occasion, with that success proving to be a 4-3 win on home soil in January 2024.

Seven of the last eight meetings have been won by Atletico, showing the size of the task for Girona in this match, and the Catalan outfit are not yet safe from the threat of relegation.

Michel's side will enter this game off the back of a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad, with the result leaving them 15th in the table, one point outside of the relegation zone.

There are just three points separating 13th-placed Osasuna from Levante in 19th - so much will change after the next gameweek, and Girona are certainly one of the teams vulnerable, with their final match of the season against Elche potentially being crucial.

The White and Reds incredibly finished third in La Liga in 2023-24, but they were 16th in 2024-25 and are now facing the possibility of being relegated from Spain's top flight.

Atletico Madrid La Liga form:

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Atletico Madrid form (all competitions):

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Girona La Liga form:

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Team News

Atletico will be without the services of Jose Gimenez, Nahuel Molina and Johnny Cardoso due to injury problems, while Pablo Barrios, Nico Gonzalez, Julian Alvarez and Giuliano Simeone all need to be assessed ahead of kickoff.

The Red and Whites will also be missing Marcos Llorente, with the Spain international suspended due to the red card that he was handed against Osasuna last time out.

Alexander Sorloth's goal off the bench against Osasuna could see him come into the side, while Alex Baena could also start, having served a one-game suspension.

As for Girona, Juan Carlos, Vladyslav Vanat, Portu and Marc-Andre ter Stegen are all out of the contest this weekend due to injury problems.

Donny van de Beek is making excellent progress in his recovery from an Achilles injury, but this match is expected to come too soon for the former Manchester United midfielder.

Cristhian Stuani has scored twice in his last two appearances for Girona, and the 39-year-old could now be introduced into the starting side on Sunday evening.

Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:

Oblak; Pubill, Le Normand, Hancko, Ruggeri; Mendoza, Vargas; Lookman, Griezmann, Baena; Sorloth

Girona possible starting lineup:

Gazzaniga; Martinez, Frances, Reis, Moreno; Witsel, Beltran; Tsygankov, Ounahi, Roca; Stuani

We say: Atletico Madrid 2-0 Girona

It is a big ask for Girona to win away at Atletico, and although the Red and Whites have not been in the best of form, we are expecting a home success to occur on Sunday.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.