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

Atletico Madrid will be bidding to record their first La Liga victory of the season when they welcome Villarreal to Wanda Metropolitano on Saturday night for an intriguing affair.

Diego Simeone's side have only picked up two points from their opening three matches of the season, which has left them down in 17th spot in the La Liga table, while the visitors are up in third on seven points.

Match preview

Atletico's main focus for this season will be to get closer to Barcelona and Real Madrid in the table, with third once again the minimum requirement, but it has been a poor start to the campaign for the Red and Whites.

Simeone's side were beaten 2-1 by Espanyol in their season opener, before drawing back-to-back matches against Elche and Alaves, with two points from three matches leaving them down in 17th spot in the table.

There is certainly pressure on Atletico to bounce back in this match, and a number of their summer signings need to step up after making underwhelming starts to their careers at the club.

Atletico have only actually won 16 of their previous 48 matches against Villarreal, though, and both league games between the two sides during the 2024-25 campaign finished level.

The Red and Whites have won just two of their last eight fixtures with the Yellow Submarine, and the away side have been one of the most impressive teams in La Liga in the early stages of the campaign.

Villarreal opened their 2025-26 La Liga season with a 2-0 victory over Real Oviedo, before making it six points from two matches with a 5-0 home success over Girona.

Marcelino's side were bidding to record a third straight win at the start of the new season before the international break, but they had to settle for a point in a 1-1 draw with Celta Vigo.

Seven points from three matches has left Villarreal in third spot in the table, with second-placed Athletic Bilbao and leaders Real Madrid the only teams to boast maximum points from their first three games.

The Yellow Submarine finished fifth in La Liga last season to secure a return to the Champions League for the 2025-26 campaign, and their European opener is away to Tottenham Hotspur on September 16.

Atletico will also begin their Champions League league phase campaign in England next week away to Liverpool.

Atletico Madrid La Liga form:

LDD

Villarreal La Liga form:

WWD

Team News

Atletico will once again be missing Alex Baena on Saturday, while Jose Gimenez and Thiago Almada are both expected to miss the contest due to injury problems.

Conor Gallagher was heavily linked with a move away from Atletico in the latter stages of the transfer window, but he remained at the club, and the expected absences of both Baena and Almada could see the Englishman start here.

Alexander Sorloth should be given the nod alongside Julian Alvarez in the final third of the field, while Pablo Barrios is likely to operate in a wide position for the Red and Whites.

As for Villarreal, Logan Costa, Willy Kambwala and Pau Cabanes are out of the match through injury, while Gerard Moreno is a doubt for the trip to the Spanish capital.

Ayoze Perez scored 22 times during an excellent 2024-25 campaign, but the 32-year-old is yet to feature this term due to an adductor injury, and he remains a huge doubt for this match.

There could be a change in the final third of the field, though, with Georges Mikautadze in line to make his debut for the club after arriving from Lyon in the latter stages of the summer market.

Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:

Oblak; Llorente, Le Normand, Lenglet, Hancko; Simeone, Cardoso, Gallagher, Barrios; Sorloth, Alvarez

Villarreal possible starting lineup:

Junior; Mourino, Foyth, Marin, S Cardona; Buchanan, Comesana, Gueye, Moleiro; Pepe, Mikautadze

We say: Atletico Madrid 1-1 Villarreal

Atletico's early-season performances have been poor, and we are finding it difficult to back them to beat a strong Villarreal, with the points potentially being shared in a low-scoring draw.

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