Gary Neville will pit his wits against Diego Simeone for the first time this weekend when Valencia welcome Atletico Madrid to the Mestalla in La Liga on Sunday night.

Wednesday's 2-1 win at Malaga has seen Valencia rise into the top half of the table for the first time this year, while Atletico remain second, but could be 11 points off leaders Barcelona by the time they take to the field.

Valencia

© Getty Images

When Valencia were thumped 7-0 at Barcelona in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final last month and then lost at struggling Real Betis in the league four days later, it was thought that Gary Neville would lose his job at Los Che, despite the fact that he had only been appointed as head coach towards the end of 2015.

A 1-1 draw at home to Barcelona in the second leg of their Copa del Rey quarter-final sparked a mini-revival, however, and Valencia have actually only lost one of their last seven games in all competitions. Gary Neville's first La Liga win came at home to Espanyol on February 13 and the former Manchester United defender has since led the team into the Europa League round of 16 following a 10-0 aggregate win over Rapid Vienna.

Valencia did lose 3-0 at home to Athletic Bilbao in the league last weekend, but returned to form on Wednesday night with a very impressive 2-1 win at Malaga. That victory actually moved Los Che into the top half (ninth) for the first time in 2016 and they are now eight points clear of the relegation zone.

There is no getting away from the fact that it has been a disappointing league campaign for the former Spanish champions, but there have been signs of marked improvement in recent weeks and victory over Atletico would arguably be Gary Neville's finest result since taking control of first-team affairs.

A busy March will see Valencia face Levante and Celta Vigo in the league and also take on Athletic Bilbao in a two-legged Europa League clash. It has not quite been the season that the supporters would have had in mind, but a European run and a top-eight finish in the league, which is achievable, would be far from disastrous.

As it stands, Gary Neville is only contracted to Valencia until the end of the season and his future is not expected to be addressed until the final weeks of the campaign. A quick run-through of Valencia's squad demonstrates their strength, however, and a few tweaks and indeed fresh players this summer should see Los Che push for the top four next term.

Recent form: LLWWLW
Recent form (all competitions): WWWWLW

Atletico

© AFP

Having lost just two of their last 21 La Liga matches, Atletico could be forgiven for thinking that they should be serious title challengers at this stage of the season. Indeed, Simeone's side have won four of their last five in the league and remained unbeaten in the process. It has been another impressive campaign for the capital outfit, but they could find themselves 11 points off the summit by the time that they take to the field on Sunday night.

As it stands, Atletico sit second in the table on 61 points - four clear of third-placed Real Madrid and eight behind the leaders Barcelona, all on 27 matches. Real Madrid and Barcelona both play before Atletico this weekend, however, and both will fancy their chances of winning their respective games against Celta Vigo and Eibar.

If Atletico cannot catch Barcelona - and it does seem unlikely - they will be desperate to finish above Real Madrid, who they beat 1-0 at the Bernabeu in their last away match in the league. Atletico also recorded a 3-0 win over Real Sociedad during the week to continue their strong run of form.

Incredibly, Simeone's side have only scored 39 times in their 27 league games this season, which is fewer than the likes of Eibar and Athletic Bilbao and just three more than Real Sociedad. The capital side have only conceded 11 goals in the league this term, however, which is a La Liga record at this stage of the campaign.

This is the first of four matches that Atletico will play before the end of the month. Next weekend, they will welcome Deportivo La Coruna in the league, before hosting PSV Eindhoven in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League tie, which is currently level at 0-0. Simeone's side will then end the month away to Sporting Gijon in the league.

Entering this weekend's round of fixtures, Atletico have the best away record in the league this season, having won 10 of their 14 matches and collected 31 points in the process. Quite incredibly, they have only conceded five away league goals all season, which is an indication of the task facing Valencia this weekend.

Recent form: LWWDWW
Recent form (all competitions): WWDDWW

Team News

© Getty Images

Valencia boss Gary Neville's main decision this weekend will come in attack, with just one from Paco Alcacer and Alvaro Negredo expected to start in his preferred 4-3-3 formation.

On-loan Real Madrid attacker Denis Cheryshev, who scored the winner against Malaga, should also keep his spot in the first selection, while Jose Gaya is expected to keep Guilherme Siqueira out once again. Centre-back Aymen Abdennour, however, is still on the treatment table, which should mean another start for Aderlan Santos.

Like Gary Neville, Atletico boss Simeone has a decision to make at centre-forward and Fernando Torres's experience could well see him given the nod over Luciano Vietto in the final third.

The visitors have no fresh injury concerns, meanwhile, which should mean a midfield trio of Koke, Gabi and Augusto Fernandez, supplemented by Saul Niguez and Antoine Griezmann in the final third.

The back five also picks itself due to Stefan Savic's injury, while Belgian attacker Yannick Ferreira Carrasco also remains on the sidelines.

Valencia possible starting lineup:
Alves; Barragan, Mustafi, Santos, Gaya; Parejo, Fuego, Gomes; Feghouli, Alcacer, Cheryshev

Atletico possible starting lineup:
Oblak; Juanfran, Gimenez, Godin, Luis; Koke, Gabi, Augusto; Saul, Torres, Griezmann

Head To Head

Valencia have lost just one of their last 12 league games at home to Atletico - recording seven wins in the process. The capital side, however, have won three of their last five meetings in all competitions.

In terms of more recent history, Atletico recorded a 2-1 victory when the pair met at the Vicente Calderon earlier this season, but Valencia recorded a 3-1 win in the corresponding game at the Mestalla last term.

In total, these two sides have met on 49 occasions in all competitions. Valencia have recorded 20 wins, Atletico 15, while the remaining 14 matches have finished all square.

We say: Valencia 1-1 Atletico

On paper, this is the clash of the weekend in La Liga, but it is more likely to be a tight and cagey contest rather than an open and expansive game of football.

Cases can be made for both teams, but Valencia have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks and we are backing Gary Neville's side to hold Atletico to a draw on Sunday night.

Previews by email