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Atletico Madrid logo
La Liga | Gameweek 12
Dec 5, 2020 at 5.30pm UK
Vicente Calderon Stadium
Real Valladolid logo

Atletico
2 - 0
Real Valladolid

Lemar (56'), Llorente (72')
Savic (24'), Vitolo (40'), Suarez (49'), Herrera (85')
FT(HT: 0-0)

Sanchez Moreno (51'), Mesa (81')

Preview: Atletico Madrid vs. Real Valladolid - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's La Liga clash between Atletico Madrid and Real Valladolid, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Atletico Madrid will be looking to record their seventh La Liga victory in a row when they continue their 2020-21 campaign at home to Real Valladolid on Saturday evening.

Diego Simeone's side are currently second in the table, just a point behind leaders Real Sociedad with two games in hand, while Valladolid occupy 17th position, having struggled for results this term.


Match preview

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone pictured in November 2020© Reuters

There is certainly an argument that Atletico are the favourites for La Liga this season, with both Real Madrid and Barcelona having their fair share of issues in the early stages of 2020-21.

Simeone's team have been excellent in Spain's top flight this term, winning seven and drawing two of their nine matches to collect 23 points, which is enough for second position in the table.

The capital giants have two games in hand on leaders Sociedad, meanwhile, and are only a point behind the Basque club, which is an indication of their strength at this stage of the campaign.

Atletico have incredibly conceded just twice in their nine league games, while they have won their last six, including back-to-back 1-0 victories over Barcelona and Valencia in their last two.

The Red and Whites also picked up a point against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday night but still have work to do if they are to qualify for the knockout round of the competition.

Real Valladolid manager Sergio Gonzalez pictured on January 2020© Reuters

Valladolid, though, have not quite been as impressive as their opponents, collecting just 10 points from their 11 matches, which has left them in 17th position in the table.

Only Real Betis (seven) have lost more La Liga games than Sergio Gonzalez's side (five) this term, while they are level on points with 18th-placed Celta Vigo on the same number of matches.

The White and Violets will bring an impressive three-game unbeaten run into this contest, though, collecting seven points from the last nine available against Athletic Bilbao, Granada and Levante.

Valladolid actually finished 13th last term and are in their third straight campaign at this level of football, but the early indications are that it could be a tough season for the club owned by Brazil legend Ronaldo.

Atletico Madrid La Liga form: WWWWWW
Atletico Madrid form (all competitions): DWWDWD

Real Valladolid La Liga form: DLLWWD


Team News

Luis Suarez in training for Atletico Madrid on September 25, 2020© Reuters

Atletico could have Luis Suarez available this weekend, although it seems unlikely that the Uruguay international, who has recently been absent due to coronavirus, will come straight into the XI.

There is every chance that Suarez could be on the bench, though, which would be a huge boost for Simeone's side at a key stage of the season. Joao Felix and Angel Correa have impressed in the South American's absence, and the pair should continue in the final third of the field.

Diego Costa, Manu Sanchez and Sime Vrsaljko remain unavailable for selection, but the squad is otherwise in good shape, and the likes of Saul Niguez, Koke and Marcos Llorente should all start.

Mario Hermoso could again get the nod over Renan Lodi, while Felipe, Hector Herrera and Thomas Lemar are likely to be among the home side's substitutes.

As for Valladolid, Kiko Olivas is out with a long-term knee injury, but the visitors are otherwise in excellent shape when it comes to absentees.

Head coach Sergio is unlikely to make changes from the XI that started against Levante, with Maranhao, who has scored in his last three league appearances, set to continue alongside Sergi Guardiola in the final third of the field.

Saidy Janko and Jota are both pushing for spots in the side, but Fabian Orellana and Oscar Plano are likely to retain their starting roles for the clash at the Wanda Metropolitano.

Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:
Oblak; Trippier, Savic, Gimenez, Hermoso; Llorente, Saul, Koke, Carrasco; Correa, Felix

Real Valladolid possible starting lineup:
Masip; Hervias, Joaquin, Bruno, Nacho; Orellana, Alcaraz, Fede, Plano; Guardiola, Maranhao


SM words green background

We say: Atletico Madrid 2-0 Real Valladolid

Atletico are absolutely flying at the moment, and it is very, very difficult to predict anything other than a home win on Saturday evening. Valladolid's recent form deserves a lot of respect, but Simeone's side should have too much on their own patch, moving to the top of the table in the process.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a home win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home Win:data



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Written by
Matt Law

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Atletico Madrid win with a probability of 65.25%. A draw had a probability of 21.7% and a win for Real Valladolid had a probability of 13.07%.

The most likely scoreline for an Atletico Madrid win was 1-0 with a probability of 14.79%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (13.64%) and 2-1 (9.26%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.04%), while for a Real Valladolid win it was 0-1 (5.45%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 13.6% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Atletico Madrid would win this match.


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Game History

How you voted: Atletico vs Real Valladolid

Atletico Madrid
81.7%
Draw
11.9%
Real Valladolid
6.4%
218
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Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix celebrates scoring on November 7, 2020
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rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona17122350193138
2Real Madrid16113234132136
3Atletico MadridAtletico16105130111935
4Athletic Bilbao1795326151132
5Villarreal157532725226
6Real Sociedad167361611524
7Osasuna166642225-324
8Mallorca177371620-424
9GironaGirona166462223-122
10Celta Vigo166372527-221
11Real BetisBetis165651820-221
12Rayo Vallecano155461516-119
13Sevilla165471723-619
14Las PalmasLas Palmas165382227-518
15Getafe163761113-216
16AlavesAlaves164391827-915
17Leganes163671423-915
18Espanyol1541101528-1313
19Valencia142481322-910
20Real ValladolidValladolid1623111134-239


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