Atletico Madrid will be bidding to avoid a third straight defeat in all competitions when they continue their La Liga campaign at home to Las Palmas on Saturday afternoon.
Diego Simeone's side will enter this clash off the back of a 1-0 loss at Sevilla, while Las Palmas recorded a 2-0 victory over Valencia in their last match in Spain's top flight.
Match preview
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Since picking up a welcome point against Real Madrid at Bernabeu, Atletico have suffered two 1-0 defeats, going down at home to Athletic Bilbao in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final on February 7, before Sevilla beat them at Estadio Ramon last weekend.
Atletico's last victory was therefore a 2-1 success over Rayo Vallecano at the end of January, and they are currently down in fourth position in the table, just two points ahead of fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao.
Simeone's side are some 13 points behind the leaders Real Madrid, meanwhile, so a title challenge late in the campaign is highly unlikely, but they are just three points from Barcelona in third.
The Red and Whites have the best home record in Spain's top flight this season, picking up 34 points from their 12 matches at Wanda Metropolitano, boasting a record of 11 wins and one draw.
Atletico recorded a 3-0 victory over Las Palmas when the two teams last locked horns in the capital in January 2018, but Las Palmas won 2-1 in the reverse clash earlier this season.
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Los Amarillos are therefore looking to a do a league double over Atletico, and their away form in the league this season has been solid, picking up 14 points from 12 matches, which is the same as their opponents here.
Las Palmas finished second in last season's Segunda Division to secure a return to the top flight, and they have performed above expectations this term, boasting a record of 10 wins, five draws and nine defeats from 24 matches, which has seen them collect 35 points to sit eighth.
Garcia Pimienta's side are only three points behind sixth-placed Real Betis, so their eyes are firmly set on a European finish this season, and they will enter this match off the back of a 2-0 win over Valencia.
The two teams were actually level at 0-0 heading into the 89th minute of the contest, but Alex Suarez struck to make it 1-0 before Marc Cardona added another in the fifth minute of added time at the end of the 90.
Las Palmas have managed to win two of their last four away league games, with their only defeat in that run proving to be a 1-0 reverse at Athletic Bilbao, and they have the second-best defensive record in La Liga this season, only conceding 20 times in their 24 games.
Team News
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Atletico will be without the services of Gabriel Paulista, Alvaro Morata, Jose Gimenez, Cesar Azpilicueta and Thomas Lemar for this weekend's league contest through injury.
There will be changes from the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Sevilla, with Nahuel Molina, Memphis Depay and Stefan Savic expected to be introduced into the XI.
Saul Niguez is also available again following a suspension and should start, but Rodrigo De Paul is set to continue in central midfield, while Samuel Lino is expected to feature as the left-sided wing-back.
As for Las Palmas, Alvaro Lemos, Eric Curbelo and Benito Ramirez remain unavailable for selection through injury, while Aaron Escandell is still suspended.
Head coach Garcia Pimienta is expected to name the same XI that took to the field for the first whistle against Valencia last time out, with Sandro Ramirez featuring in the final third of the field.
Marvin Park played further forward last time out and that is again expected to be the case here, with Munir El Haddadi operating on the opposite side.
Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:
Oblak; Witsel, Savic, Hermoso; Molina, Saul, De Paul, Koke, Lino; Griezmann, Depay
Las Palmas possible starting lineup:
Valles; Suarez, Coco, Marmol, S Cardona; Park, Munoz, Perrone, K Rodriguez, El Haddadi; S Ramirez
We say: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Las Palmas
This has all of the makings of a very difficult game for Atletico, with Las Palmas so impressive this season. Simeone's side have been excellent at home in 2023-24, though, and we are backing the Red and Whites to navigate their way to a huge three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
