Atletico Madrid vs Girona predictions and match preview for Saturday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as Diego Simeone’s side target three more points.
| Date | Saturday 8th October 2022 |
| Kick-Off | 16:15 (local time) |
| Stadium | Metropolitano |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Atletico Madrid vs Girona Preview
Atletico Madrid are back at the Metropolitano this weekend to take on Girona. It has been a frustrating start to the season for Diego Simeone and his side and they’ll be looking to try to find a bit more consistency in these final few weeks before the World Cup.
Victory here would be a step in the right direction. They did put in possibly their best performance of the season last weekend with a 2-0 win at Sevilla. They could have had more in truth with Simeone returning to a back four and a system that just seemed to allow more players to operate in their more natural roles.
Just when you were starting to think the solution to their early season woes had been found however, Atletico Madrid sunk to another disappointing European defeat in midweek. Their 2-0 loss in Belgium against Club Brugge means they are under real pressure in their Champions League group with just 3 points on the board. Next Wednesday’s return clash with Brugge is very important indeed and we may see some rotation here as a result.
That’s good news for Girona but with Atleti not seeming too clear on their best XI in any case, it may not radically alter the course of this game. Michel’s side have impressed at times on their return to the top flight but there have also been games where their defensive flaws and limitations have been exposed.
The most recent example of that was last weekend when they were beaten 5-3 at home by Real Sociedad in one of the games of the season so far. The Catalans spurned 2-1 and 3-2 leads to lose the game. While they clearly have some exciting young players who are capable of producing moments of real quality in the final third, defensively they are a bit naive at times and if Atleti are even close to their best, they should be able to exploit that.
Team News & Possible Lineups
Atletico Madrid
| INJURED | Reguilon, Llorente, Felipe |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED |
Possible XI: Oblak – Reinildo, Gimenez, Savic, Molina – Carrasco, Witsel, Koke, Correa – Felix, Cunha (4-4-2)
Coach: Diego Simeone
Girona
| INJURED | Borja Garcia, Kebe, Saiz, David Lopez, Reinier |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED |
Possible XI: Juan Carlos – Juanpe, Bernardo, Bueno – Gutierrez, Aleix Garcia, Herrera, Romeu, Martinez – Riquelme, Castellanos (3-5-2)
Coach: Michel
Score Prediction: Atletico Madrid 3-1 Girona
Despite a relatively unconvincing start to the season, it’s hard to look past the hosts here. They looked much more comfortable with the system used at Sevilla last weekend and also look as though they will soon have a solution to the Antoine Griezmann 30-minute dilemma which hasn’t been ideal. They ought to bounce back from defeat in Belgium with victory in this one.
PLEASE NOTE – Our LaLiga predictions are not betting tips! No profits are guaranteed if you’re using them to bet on Spanish football. If you are gambling, do so responsibly and never stake more than you can afford to lose. BeGambleAware.
