Atletico Madrid will be eager to continue the unbeaten start to the 2024/25 season when they welcome RCD Espanyol to the Civitas Metropolitano on Wednesday.
The 2024/25 La Liga season has continued this week with a midweek round of fixtures, with Matchday 3 kicking off with the game between Villarreal and Celta Vigo. Barcelona will feature on Tuesday, while Atletico Madrid will host Espanyol at the Civitas Metropolitano on Wednesday before we move to Real Madrid’s clash on Thursday.
Atletico Madrid began the 2024/25 La Liga season with a disappointing 2-2 draw with Villarreal, with Alexander Sorloth rescuing a point for Los Rojiblancos with his equaliser. The Colchoneros followed up the result with a convincing 3-0 win over Girona to rise to fourth on the table.
As for Espanyol, they have endured a trial by fire since returning to La Liga, losing both games to take the second-from-bottom spot in the standings. Real Valladolid and Real Sociedad clinched 1-0 wins over the Catalan outfit, and Manolo Gonzalez has an uphill task to take his team outside the drop zone.
Aston Villa came from a goal down to hold Espanyol to a 1-1 draw in the most recent La Liga meeting at the Civitas Metropolitano, with Joao Felix scoring the equaliser. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Atletico Madrid
Diego Simeone does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. Against Espanyol on Wednesday, the Atletico Madrid manager should have a full-strength squad.
Jan Oblak will take his usual spot between the sticks, with Atletico Madrid lining up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him against Espanyol on Wednesday. The central defensive partnership should feature Axel Witsel, Robin Le Normand, and Jose Maria Gimenez.
Marcos Llorente and Samuel Lino should be the two wing-backs, with the duo providing width in the final third. In addition, the two wide players will flank the central midfielders, with Conor Gallagher making his first start for Atletico Madrid by pairing up with captain Koke.
Alexander Sorloth should return to the starting eleven by leading the line for Atletico Madrid against Espanyol. Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann will support the Norwegian striker, with the former desperate to kick-start his spell with Los Rojiblancos after being slow off the blocks thus far.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Oblak; Gimenez, Witsel, Le Normand; Llorente, Gallagher, Koke, Lino; Griezmann, Alvarez; Sorloth
RCD Espanyol
Like his counterpart in the Atletico Madrid dugout, Manolo Gonzalez does not have many issues to deal with ahead of the trip to the Civitas Metropolitano. The Espanyol manager should be without one first-team player, with Eduardo Expósito still on the sidelines.
Espanyol should line up in a 5-3-2 formation against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, with the in-demand Joan Garcia taking his spot between the sticks. The backline should feature Alvaro Tejero, Omar El Hilali, Marash Kumbulla, Carlos Romero, and captain Sergi Gomez.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Alex Kral, Jose Gragera, and Pere Milla. The trio will look to keep things tight in the middle of the park, with the latter providing the forward thrust from the central areas. Finally, Alejo Veliz and Javi Puado should be the two attackers for the away side against Atletico Madrid at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Probable Lineup (5-3-2): Garcia; Tejero, El Hilali, Kumbulla, Gomez, Romero; Kral, Gragera, Milla; Veliz, Puado
Key Stats
- Atletico Madrid have beaten Espanyol more often than any other team in La Liga (83 wins in 162 games). The visitors are also the only club to concede more than 300 goals in the competition to Atletico Madrid (307).
- Atletico Madrid and Espanyol have played out draws in their last two La Liga meetings. Only once in their history have the two clubs participated in three or more successive stalemates (three between 2005 and 2006).
- Atletico Madrid are unbeaten in their last six La Liga meetings with Espanyol (W3 D3). Another result without a defeat will pave the way for their joint-best unbeaten La Liga run against Espanyol in the 21st century (seven between 2014 and 2017, W5 D2).
- Espanyol have won two of their last three La Liga games against Madrilenian in the Madrid region (L1), only one fewer victory than in their previous 27 visits to Comunidad de Madrid.
- Atletico Madrid have won 26 of their last 29 La Liga games at the Civitas Metropolitano (D1 L2), failing to find the back of the net in only one of these fixtures.
Player to Watch
Conor Gallagher
After a rousing reception on his impeccable presentation, Conor Gallagher will be raring to go in his first start for Atletico Madrid when they welcome Espanyol to the Civitas Metropolitano. The Englishman took some time before approving the move to Spain but might have been heartened by how the crowd greeted him during his unveiling.
The 24-year-old fits perfectly into Diego Simeone’s style of player, and his eye for a goal should hold Atletico Madrid in good stead. Gallagher is the ideal candidate to be Koke’s central midfield partner, and he should stamp his authority on his first start at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Prediction
Atletico Madrid 2-0 RCD Espanyol
Recent games between Atletico Madrid and Espanyol have not seen runaway domination by the bigwigs. In addition, despite losing both games at the start of the 2024/25 season, the visitors have shown some promising signs on the defensive front.
So, Wednesday’s game will not be a cakewalk for Atletico Madrid, with Antoine Griezmann holding the key for the home side. The veteran Frenchman should rise to the occasion and help Atletico Madrid deliver a 2-0 win over Espanyol, with Julian Alvarez breaking his duck and kick-starting his spell at Atletico Madrid.