SUNDAY 04 FEBRUARY | SANTIAGO BERNABEU | 22:00
A fortnight after their blockbuster Copa Del Rey Round of 16 clash, Real Madrid square off with Atletico Madrid in La Liga. Indeed, this is the third meeting of the Capital clubs in 2024, with each camp getting one over the other!
To win (90 min)
Real Madrid 7/10
Draw 29/10
Atletico Madrid 34/10
REAL MADRID
As far as Galatico’s go, Jude Bellingham has cemented his place up there with the greats. The 20-year-old midfielder has made a stunning impact at Santiago Bernabeu following his €103 million (£88m/$112m) transfer from Borussia Dortmund in 2023.
Across all competitions, the Three Lions star has registered 18 goals for Los Blancos this season, alongside eight assists. Further to this, he picked up his fifth booking of the La Liga season against Almeria and served his 1 match ban against Las Palmas. Suffice to say, the Madridsta will be raring to go in this one!
As far as chinks in the armour go, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has tended to rotate between France’s Ferland Mendy and Spain’s Fran Garcia at left-back this campaign. The Italian tactician will need to add extra protection on that flank, as Antoine Griezmann will have the licence to exploit that inconsistency.
Ancelotti has penned a new deal with Madrid until June 2026 and has opened up a two-horse race for La Liga honours this season, with Cinderella story Girona. The sixty-four-year-old should get that one over the line and for good reason – the Copa del Rey was the only trophy Madrid would lift last season.
ATLETICO MADRID
Standing in Bellingham’s wake is Antoine Griezmann. The talisman is undoubtedly one of Atletico Madrid’s greatest players and has etched himself further in their history books this season. The France forward scored his 174th goal for Atletico, in their Spanish Super Cup match against Real Madrid, to overtake the legendary Luis Aragones as the club’s all-time leading scorer.
Griezmann was a key member of France’s World Cup-winning team in 2018 and is the sixth-most expensive player in history. Furthermore, the dangerman has twice been on the Ballon d’Or podium – finishing third in 2016 and 2018. He has grown from strength to strength in his second spell at Atletico and was widely regarded as La Liga’s best player in 2023.
Last season saw a change in the football style that we have come to expect from Los Colchoneros. It was an uncharacteristic free-flowing attacking style that marked a major development in Diego Simeone’s decade in charge, which placed Griezmann firmly at the centre of their approach.
In the 2022/23 season, Griezmann would personally reap 17 goals and 22 assists as El Cholo’s men recovered from a poor start to finish third in the Spanish topflight. This season has been similar, with the 32-year-old awarded La Liga’s player of the month for November and spearheading their cruise into the Champions League knockout stages as group winners. All signs point to him in this clash of the greats.
VERDICT: REAL MADRID
As is the case in so many of these derbies, form goes out the window. With that being said, Atletico Madrid have just not been able to replicate their form at the Civitas Metropolitano. Earlier this season, Simeone’s men registered four consecutive away defeats in La Liga – the first time this has happened in the El Cholo era…
Written by Desh Parthab