Atletico Madrid vs Valencia
There’s a fascinating clash for us to take in on Saturday night in Spain’s La Liga, when out of form Atletico Madrid host sleeping giants Valencia at the Wanda Metropolitano.
After a disappointing run of La Liga 2022 results Los Rojiblancos have fallen out of contention for the title and now a top four place is priority. Meanwhile Valencia, currently in 10th place, are three points behind the last Europa League spot, but only five behind Atleti in fourth.
Valencia are six times La Liga winners, twice this century, in 2002 and 2004, but the passionate fans at the Mestalla Stadium have had little to cheer in recent seasons, though they look certain to improve on last season’s 13th placed finish.
Talking Points
Correa can lift Atletico’s mood
At SBOTOP odds of 1.46 to win this game, anything other than three points will be a poor return for Atleti, and they need a pick up after suffering a Spanish Super Cup loss to Athletic Bilbao in the heat of Saudi Arabia, closely followed by a disastrous Copa del Rey exit at the hands of Real Sociedad.
A draw with Villarreal last week was a disappointing result and the La Liga 2022 betting odds reacted by chucking Los Rojiblancos out to a price of around 35.00 to retain their title. So now head coach Diego Simeone must ensure Atleti keep hold of their top four position which is now under serious pressure from Sociedad and Barcelona.
One man who has maintained his performance level is winger-cum-forward Angel Correa who scored a spectacular goal from the half way line in the match against the Yellow Submarine, to make it seven for the season. With Antoine Griezmann injured, Correa has been a key figure alongside Luis Suarez who was suspended for the trip to Villarreal but should be back in action for this big game.
Simeone will be looking for more from forward Joao Felix who could make a start, while Brazilian striker Matheus Cunha, who has three goals might have to settle for a place on the bench. Argentine midfield ace Rodrigo de Paul has shown glimpses of the reason Los Rojiblancos gave him a five year contract after his switch from Udinese and his boss will hope to see him start to dominate in the big games.
Gaya out for Valencia
Valencia faced Sevilla on Wednesday night and came back from an early setback to draw 1-1 as Goncalo Guedes scored his eighth goal of the campaign. And that would have been a decent night’s work against the title chasers. League leaders Real Madrid were certainly happy, but Head Coach Pepe Bordelas’ mood darkened when he lost his influential captain and centre back Jose Gaya who picked up a second yellow card, and now he’s unavailable for Saturday’s shootout in Madrid. Gaya is a key figure, a commanding presence, an inspirational leader and an attacking threat as he showed when he provided the assist for Guedes’ equaliser with a superb cross.
Los Ches suffered a 4-1 defeat the last time they visited Madrid, losing to league leaders Real, Guedes scoring Valencia’s consolation goal, but with four wins in the last seven games they are on a good run of form. The loss of Gaya could be a hammer blow though, particularly as the highly rated Carlos Soler is also out, with an injury.
Bordelas might look to experienced Danish midfielder Daniel Wass for leadership on the pitch, while Dutch keeper Jasper Cillessen is a class act as the last line of defence.
History
These two giants of La Liga have had some great battles over the years and honours have been fairly even over the past 61 games, with Atleti holding a slight edge at 22 wins to Valencia’s 20, while there have been 19 draws. But Los Rojiblancos have had the upper hand in recent seasons, winning three and drawing three of the last six meetings.
The November encounter at the Mestalla Stadium ended in a 3-3 draw while, last season, Atletico beat Valencia at home, 3-1.
Valencia have failed to win on their last 12 visits to the Wanda Metropolitano, while Atleti have a home record of five wins, three draws and a single defeat
Betting Tip
 |
 | Atletico Madrid vs Valencia | Atletico Madrid Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 1.83 |
| January 23, 04:00 (GMT+8) |
Valencia are at odds of 2.06 with a one goal start (+1.00) and you can make a good case for them getting something from this game, having held off Sevilla in midweek.
But Atleti desperately need a win to hold on to their fourth place and, while Valencia will be without Gaya, the hosts welcome back Suarez and, with a strong home record, they will see this as a chance to get back on track and keep Valencia on the outside. We’re not expecting another six goal thriller so a score line of 2-0 at 5.60, or 1-0 at 4.84, might be worth a closer look.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT))
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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