Atletico Madrid vs Alaves match preview and predictions for Sunday’s LaLiga match. Read on for the head-to-head, team news and predicted lineups as the hosts aim to get back to winning ways after European disappointment.
| Date | Sunday 21st March 2021 |
| Kick-Off | 18:30 (local time) |
| Stadium | Wanda Metropolitano |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Atletico Madrid vs Alaves Preview
The next chapter in the 2020/21 title race in LaLiga takes place on Sunday as Atletico Madrid and Barcelona both face Basque opposition within a couple of hours of each other. Atleti have on paper, by far the easier fixture, and they really have to win this game if they are serious about going the distance and clinching the title.
They head into it after a bitterly disappointing 3-0 aggregate defeat to Chelsea in the Champions League last 16. Not only the scoreline but the level of performance across the tie will frustrate Diego Simeone immensely. In truth it has been just part of a real dip in form in recent weeks with Atleti having also dropped points in 5 of their last 8 LaLiga matches too.
That has opened up a real window of opportunity for Barcelona who are on a long unbeaten run and closing in on Atleti in the title race while Real Madrid are not completely out of the picture either. The international break may give Atleti a chance to regroup and refocus on the prize at stake, but on current form that first league title in seven years looks a very long way away, despite their points advantage at the top.
As for Alaves, their focus is purely now on staying in this league and in truth they aren’t making a very good job of it. It’s just one point from their last five games and they still look no closer to finding the solutions to their problems under Abelardo. They’ve been hit hard by late goals in their last two matches, seeing a 2-0 lead turn into a 3-2 defeat against Betis before Cadiz struck late to salvage a point in a relegation six pointer last time out.
Alaves’ problems run quite deep. They’ve collected just 30 points from 38 games since Spanish football returned behind closed doors last June. That’s 6 fewer than any other team who has been in LaLiga for the whole duration of that period and while they are by no means destined to relegation, it does look as though there is now a real danger that this could be the year that they drop back down to the Segunda Division.
Head to Head
- Last 6 Competitive Meetings: 5 Atletico Madrid Wins, 1 Draw.
- Atleti have won their last 3 home games against Alaves.
- They also won 2-1 in Vitoria earlier this term.
- Alaves haven’t won away to Atleti since a 1-0 win at the Vicente Calderon in 2003.
Team News
Joao Felix is suspended for the hosts but otherwise Atleti should be at full strength.
Manu García and Tomas Pina both serve bans for the visiting team. Rodrigo Ely is out injured.
Predicted Atleti Starting Lineup:
Oblak – Hermoso, Gimenez, Savic – Carrasco, Llorente, Koke, Lemar, Trippier – Suarez, Correa (3-5-2)
Predicted Alaves Starting Lineup:
Pacheco – Duarte, Lejeune, Laguardia, Navaro – Rioja, Pons, Battaglia, Pellistri – Joselu, Mendez (4-4-2)
Atletico Madrid vs Alaves Predictions
LaLiga Expert Predicts: Atletico Madrid 2-1 Alaves (follow us on Tipstrr to view our betting tips)
Alaves have been competitive in recent games and with Atleti not convincing right now, this won’t necessarily be comfortable for the hosts. However the visitors will be very low on confidence and even if they can stay in the game until the latter stages, you’d fancy Atleti will ultimately find the killer goal to seal a valuable three points.
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