Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are locked on 31 points in the La Liga table ahead of Sunday’s showdown at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.
Sitting four points clear of Barca and Atletico, Real Madrid and Girona lead the way after 14 matches, although Diego Simeone’s side have a game in hand.
Following Champions League triumphs for both clubs in midweek, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will be eager to gather further momentum as they return to domestic action.
On Tuesday, Barca claimed a 2-1 victory over Porto, coming from behind to claim all three points thanks to goals from Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix.
Although Xavi’s men were held to a 1-1 draw by Rayo Vallecano last weekend, they have still avoided defeat in each of their previous three La Liga clashes.
When you look at the bigger picture, Barcelona have lost just one of their 14 league games this season, picking up nine wins and four draws in the process.
Having won six of their seven home league matches this term – scoring 15 goals while keeping four clean sheets – Barca will be confident of triumphing on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid defeated Feyenoord 3-1 on Tuesday, with Mario Hermoso’s second-half strike complementing two own goals.
Thanks to the midweek UCL victory, Atletico head into Sunday’s clash on a four-game winning streak across all competitions.
Better still, Simeone’s men have suffered a solitary defeat in their previous 14 games across all competitions, securing 11 wins along the way.
Boasting the second-best defensive record and the third-best offensive record in La Liga, Atletico will be hopeful of causing an upset this weekend.
Head-to-head: Barcelona completed the league double over Atletico Madrid last season, with Xavi’s side securing a couple of 1-0 victories.
Believe it or not, Atletico have managed to win just two of their previous 26 La Liga meetings with Barca, although each of those victories have come since 2020.
Team news: Barcelona are currently without injured goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen and influential midfielder Gavi.
Atletico Madrid have a couple of injury absentees of their own, with Thomas Lemar and Vitolo set to miss Sunday’s trip to Barcelona.
Although there is nothing between Barcelona and Atletico in the current standings, it is difficult to ignore Barca’s remarkable record in this fixture.
For that reason, Forebet predicts that Barcelona will claim all three points on Sunday, with the hosts expected to edge the visitors by a one-goal margin.