Overview
Recent defeats against Osasuna and Getafe in the domestic arena have left Real Madrid not much room for mistakes in La Liga at this time. The Royal team may be widened the gap to 7 points from the top if Barcelona defeats Rayo Vallecano.
Therefore, the importance of winning all 3 points in the upcoming match cannot be underestimated. Real Madrid entered this confrontation with positive form when winning 4 consecutive matches in all competitions, including two victories in La Liga against Celta Vigo and Elche.
Coach Alvaro Arbeloa's team currently has a record of 21 wins, 3 draws and 4 defeats after 28 rounds, and also shows impressive form at home at the Bernabeu with 12 wins in 14 matches.
Real Madrid also just defeated Manchester City 2-1 in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16, thereby winning 5-1 to advance to the quarter-finals, where they will face Bayern Munich.
In the final stage of the season, Real Madrid is aiming to win a La Liga and Champions League double, and is determined to avenge Atletico Madrid after a 2-5 defeat in the first leg at the beginning of the season.
Atletico Madrid gained great confidence from that victory, but in the most recent rematch, Los Blancos won 2-1 in the Spanish Super Cup semi-finals earlier this year.
Statistics show the balance between the two teams when 4/6 of the most recent encounters in La Liga ended in a draw. Notably, Real Madrid has not been able to defeat Atletico at the Bernabeu stadium in La Liga since December 2021. Meanwhile, Atletico has only won 1 point in the last 3 away games here.
Coach Diego Simeone's team currently has not many opportunities to compete for the championship when they are 9 points behind Real Madrid and 13 points behind Barcelona. However, they still maintain their position in the top 4 with a safe 13-point gap from Real Betis.
In the European arena, Atletico is also aiming for a big goal when they have won a ticket to the Champions League quarter-finals, despite losing 2-3 to Tottenham in the second leg of the round of 16. Here, they will face Barcelona.
Not only that, the red and white team also participates in the Copa del Rey final, where they will face Real Sociedad on April 18.
Personnel situation
Eder Militao (hamstring), Dani Ceballos (calf), Rodrygo (knee) and Thibaut Courtois ( thigh) will definitely be absent from Real Madrid's upcoming match due to injury.
In the opposite direction, Ferland Mendy, David Alaba and Raul Asencio may return to the squad. Jude Bellingham has also returned to normal training and is likely to be on the bench after recovering from a hamstring injury.
Kylian Mbappe has reappeared after a knee injury when coming on as a substitute in the match against Man City. The French striker is expected to pair with Vinicius Junior in attack, while Alvaro Carreras is likely to return to the starting lineup in the left-back position.
On Atletico Madrid's side, Pablo Barrios (leg) and Rodrigo Mendoza (muscle) are both absent due to injury, while Jan Oblak's ability to play is still uncertain due to a hip problem.
In case Oblak does not recover in time, Juan Musso is likely to continue to start.
Marc Pubill is expected to return to Atletico's defense in this match, while Alexander Sorloth may be present in attack. Antoine Griezmann is likely to start the match on the bench in the Madrid derby.
Expected lineup:
Real Madrid: Lunin, Alexander-Arnold, Rudiger, Huijsen, Carreras, Camavinga, Tchouameni, Valverde, Guler, Mbappe, Vinicius.
Atletico Madrid: Musso, Molina, Pubill, Hancko, Ruggeri, Simeone, Llorente, Cardoso, Lookman, Sorloth, Alvarez.
The match between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid takes place at 3:00 AM on March 23rd (Vietnam time).
