La Liga: Atletico Madrid vs. Villareal Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Spanish champions, Atletico Madrid, and the Europa League winners, Villarreal, met in the last match of Sunday’s La Liga program. It is the derby of the round, and we are sure that both sides will be very sharp to outplay the rivals across the field. Atletico posted two wins on the opening two contests, while on the other side, Villarreal played 180 minutes without seeing a goal. This is a battle between two very tactical sides, and two masterminds behind them, Simeone and Emery. Their clash adds spice to Sunday’s event.

Preview

Atletico Madrid (-125) defeated Celta in Vigo on an opening day, 1-2, and after that routinely beat Elche at home, 1-0. It was a typical game for the Madridians who scored one goal and after that killed the tempo and the pace on the field, keeping the result intact until the end.

Simeone knows what he wants. Appealing appearance and exhibition are the two things he isn’t keen on. The only important matter for the Argentinian are three points, regardless of the cost. As we see, he is doing just fine pushing that mindset.

Throughout the preseason, Atletico played a few games with both teams to score and over 2.5 hits, but we are more than sure that as the time goes by, the champs will get back in the usual rhythm, bringing low-efficient affairs.

Villarreal (+425) didn’t post a single win since winning the Europa League finals. After the match against United, whom they couldn’t defeat during 90 minutes, but only after the penalties, Unai Emery’s side lost four games and had five draws.

The most recent two were in La Liga, against Granada and Espanyol, the latter being on the road. These two matches were very dull and ugly, but that is the way the Yellow Submarine plays.

You’ll see many tactical assignments in their lineup, and the main purpose is to protect the net. The offense comes after, and we are free to say that Emery isn’t dedicating as much time to this part of the game as for the defense.

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Herrera and Joao Felix are out due to injuries, but that won’t be too big of a handicap for the hosts. Felipe is questionable, and all other players are ready.

Chukuweze and Parejo are out for the guests, and in their case, the absence of these two players is a solid blow. The Yellow Submarine doesn’t have the depth as their rivals.

Head to Head Games

Atletico didn’t lose in six straight against Villarreal, or since March 2018. The two games in the previous campaign ended 0-0 in Madrid and 0-2 at El Madrigal, where Atletico collected three valuable points.

Only one match in the past six saw over 2.5 goals.

Prediction

The tradition should continue here, and the game won’t see too many goals. Simply, Villarreal is coming to take one point, and they will be just fine with 0-0. Meanwhile, the hosts won’t pressure too much, because it is still early in the season. The odds on this pick are -166, which is ok.

Pick: Under 2.5 goals -166