Real Madrid's payback chances came earlier than expected against their long-time rival Atletico Madrid when they meet on Saturday at Vicente Calderon stadium. The good news for Carlo Ancelotti's side will be the comeback of Cristiano Ronaldo after a two-game ban, but the bad news include the absence of Sergio Ramos and James Rodriguez due to injuries. On the other hand, Los Colchoneros have their complete squad available, something that did not happen for Diego Simeone's men since November 2014.
This will be the sixth game between the two neighbors in the 2014-15 season, with a clear advantage for the team coached by Diego Simeone. During this run, Atletico won three times against Los Blancos, with only two draws among the two sides. With their sights set on a goal scoring record for La Liga, Real Madrid has suffered to damage Atletico's net, being able to score only four goals in five matches. In fact, the last win for Ancelotti's crew against the red-and-white came in UEFA Champions League Final, and Los Blancos needed overtime to score four times against Atletico.
But not all stats favor Atletico Madrid completely. In the last six games played at Vicente Calderon, Real Madrid won three of those games, drawing one and losing the two most recent ones. In fact, Atletico Madrid have not been able to win against their hated opponents since June 1999. With Real Madrid's depleted defense, this could be a golden opportunity for them to erase that statistic once and for all.
On the attacking department, both sides can start dangerous strikers for each team. Atletico Madrid may rely on Raul Garcia's personality, which has given Atletico a couple of goals during the current streak for Atletico. Furthermore, Fernando Torres' first couple of goals against Los Blancos came in their last meeting at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. For Ancelotti's team, all eyes will be posed on the famous BBC attack, with Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo being the only ones available on Saturday that have scored against Simeone's Atletico recently, being Sergio Ramos and James Rodriguez the other players defeating any of Los Colchoneros' goalkeepers.
If Real Madrid can defeat Atletico, the gap between the two teams will be extended to ten points, practically leaving no hope for Los Colchoneros to re-validate their La Liga title.
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid team sheets
Atletico's lineup: Moyá, Juanfran, Godín, Miranda, Siqueira, Gabi, Tiago, Koke, Arda, Griezmann, Mandzukic.
Real Madrid's lineup: Casillas, Varane, Coentrao, Khedira, Ronaldo, Kroos, Benzema, Bale, Carvajal, Nacho, Isco.
Atletico's subs: Oblak, Gámez, Gimenez, Mario Suárez, Saúl, Raúl García, Torres.
Real Madrid's subs: Navas, Chicharito, Lucas Silva, Arbeloa, Jesé, Illarra, Llorente.
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