Six points separate third-placed Barcelona and fourth-placed Atletico Madrid ahead of their showdown at Civitas Metropolitano this weekend.
Both sides dispatched Italian opposition to book their place in the Champions League quarter-finals in midweek, with Barca defeating Napoli and Atletico seeing off Inter Milan.
Can Diego Simeone’s men build on Wednesday’s success? Or will Xavi’s boys extend their unbeaten streak in La Liga? Read on to find out what Forebet’s predictive analytics model expects.
🌟 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐂̧𝐀 𝟑-𝟏 𝐍𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈 🌟⚽️ Fermín⚽️ Cancelo⚽️ Lewandowski pic.twitter.com/0qDMtEy72q— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 15, 2024
🌟 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐂̧𝐀 𝟑-𝟏 𝐍𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈 🌟⚽️ Fermín⚽️ Cancelo⚽️ Lewandowski pic.twitter.com/0qDMtEy72q
Following a 2-2 aggregate draw, Atletico Madrid defeated Inter Milan 3-2 on penalties to reach the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Still, there is no hiding the fact that Atletico have managed to win just one of their previous six matches in normal time, suffering three defeats in that sequence.
Simeone’s side have been wildly inconsistent in La Liga of late, recording two wins, two draws and two losses in their last six encounters.
However, trends show that Atletico have been immense on home soil this season, winning 13 of their 14 league games at Civitas Metropolitano to remain unbeaten in their backyard.
Barcelona, meanwhile, defeated Napoli 3-1 on Tuesday, punching their ticket to the Champions League quarter-finals thanks to a 4-2 aggregate victory.
Xavi’s men have now avoided defeat in each of their last nine matches across all competitions, picking up six wins and three draws in the process.
In La Liga, Barcelona have lost just one of their previous 12 encounters, and they carry a seven-game unbeaten run into Sunday’s showdown.
It is also worth noting that Barca have yet to taste defeat on the road in the league this season, winning seven and drawing six of their 13 away outings.
Head-to-head: Barcelona have won each of their last four La Liga meetings with Atletico, including three consecutive 1-0 victories.
To make matters worse for Simeone’s side, they have managed to win just two of their previous 27 league matches against the Catalan giants.
Team news: Atletico Madrid’s injury list contains Jose Maria Gimenez (muscle), Thomas Lemar (Achilles) and Vitolo (knee).
On the flip side, Barcelona are currently without Marcos Alonso (back), Alejandro Balde (muscle), Gavi (knee), Ferran Torres (knee), Frenkie de Jong (ankle) and Pedri (injury).
Although Atletico have a poor recent record in this fixture, Simeone’s men will be eager to protect their unbeaten home record this season.
Forebet’s AI algorithm predicts that Atletico Madrid and Barcelona will serve up a high-scoring draw, with both teams netting over 1.5 goals.