Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid are set to lock horns on Saturday at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu in a highly-anticipated clash that could be decisive for the 2024/25 LALIGA EA SPORTS title race. Second-placed Los Rojiblancos will visit the league leaders in the second ELDERBI DE MADRID of the campaign. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with Meridianbet.
A crucial clash in a thrilling title race
Atlético de Madrid recently saw their 15-game winning streak across all competitions come to an end with a 1-0 loss away at CD Leganés on Matchday 20. Diego Simeone’s side then dropped two points on home soil with a 1-1 draw against Villarreal CF, but they managed to get back winning ways last weekend. Goals from Samuel Lino and Antoine Griezmann allowed Atleti to secure a 2-0 win over RCD Mallorca at home.
This victory was worth more than three points, as Real Madrid lost 1-0 away at RCD Espanyol, meaning that Los Colchoneros have now reduced the deficit to their city rivals to just one point. Carlo Ancelotti’s team had a five-game winning run across all competitions snapped by the Catalan side, who netted late in the game through Carlos Romero to clinch a narrow victory.
The previous time Real Madrid had lost in the league was back on December 4th in Bilbao, where Athletic Club celebrated a 2-1 victory over the reigning champions. In fact, Los Blancos then enjoyed a six-match unbeaten run in the league which ended at the RCDE Stadium on Saturday.
With 16 games to go until the end of the season, a potential win in the derby could see Real Madrid firmly establish themselves at top of the table, stretching their lead over Atleti to four points.
Scoring past Jan Oblak isn’t easy
Yet, breaking down the stingiest defence in the LALIGA EA SPORTS will be anything but an easy task for Ancelotti’s men. Los Colchoneros have conceded a league-low 14 goals, and no team have allowed in fewer away goals than Atlético de Madrid (seven) thus far. Meanwhile, only Real Sociedad goalkeeper Álex Remiro (11) has kept more clean sheets than Jan Oblak (10), who is standing out in goal for yet another term.
It should be noted that Real Madrid have beaten their arch rivals just once in their last six encounters across all competitions, with their last league victory dating back to September 2022 (2-1 on the road). Derbies between the two teams tend to be tight affairs, with three of their last four league matchups ending in a 1-1 draw. That was precisely the result when the they last met in September, with Éder Militão opening the scoring just after the hour mark and Atlético de Madrid netting a late equaliser through Ángel Correa to clinch a point at home.
Atleti’s struggles at the Bernabéu
Atleti need all three points in their bid to overtake Real Madrid in the table. To do so, a certain spell must be broken, as Simeone’s side haven’t won at the Bernabéu since February 2016. With Griezmann finding the back of the net in the 52nd minute on that occasion, Atlético de Madrid clinched a 1-0 victory – their third straight league win at the Bernabéu at the time. However, what followed was three defeats and five draws away at Real Madrid across the next eight league games, who kept clean sheets in half of those duels.
What’s also intriguing is the head-to-head record between Simeone and Ancelotti. The two tacticians have celebrated eight victories each in 23 derbies across all competitions, with seven of those games ending in a draw.
Now it remains to be seen if either of the two will manage to edge his counterpart or whether a stalemate at the Bernabéu will add to the excitement building around the two trophy aspirants. What’s certain is that this title race, which also has FC Barcelona lurking just behind, looks poised to be the most exciting for years.
