Atlético Madrid have won their last 11 games in a row.
The top two in La Liga will come head to head at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Saturday night at 9pm local time (3pm ET) as FC Barcelona welcome an in-form Atlético Madrid side.
The Colchoneros have won their last 11 games in a row in all competitions, a run which has allowed them to move level with FC Barcelona on 38 points in La Liga, one ahead of Real Madrid. Atlético, however, has the benefit of only having played 17 games, one less than Barcelona.
In this meeting, coach Diego Simeone will be looking for his first league win against Barcelona at the Catalan team’s stadium since he was appointed in 2011. Simeone has decisions to make regarding his team selection, but does so with a strong squad available for him to choose from.
Atlético Madrid team news vs. FC Barcelona
Atlético Madrid are set to have their full squad available for them for the third game in a row. There is only one mild injury concern, as Ángel Correa is a slight doubt after stepping out of training on Thursday, but is expected to be fit enough to make the squad and look to come into the game off the substitutes’ bench.
Other positive news for Atlético includes the absence of any so-called “fear clause” in the loan agreement which sees Clement Lenglet play for the club. He is currently on loan at the Rojiblancos from FC Barcelona, but will be available to feature for his loan club in Catalonia on Saturday night.
Elsewhere, no players are suspended. Captain Koke, midfielder Rodrigo de Paul and defenders Javi Galán and Clement Lenglet are all on four year yellow cards in La Liga this season, meaning that they would miss the next league fixture, against Osasuna on January 12th, through suspension if they are shown a yellow card.
Expected Atlético Madrid lineup vs. FC Barcelona
Atlético Madrid’s expected lineup vs FC Barcelona (4-4-2): Jan Oblak; Marcos Llorente, José María Giménez, Clement Lenglet; Giuliano Simeone, Pablo Barrios, Rodrigo de Paul, Conor Gallagher; Julián Álvarez and Antoine Griezmann.
There is only one change expected from Diego Simeone as he recalls Conor Gallagher into the midfield on the left flank, replacing Samuel Lino after he has struggled to impress in recent weeks.
Beyond that change on the left of midfield, the line-up will be the same as the side that beat Getafe and Slovan Bratislava in the last two fixtures, with a total of four goals scored and only one, a penalty, conceded.
Off the bench, Atlético coach Simeone is likely to turn to Alexander Sørloth, Ángel Correa, Nahuel Molina and captain Koke, to keep the team fresh. Sørloth has started only two games in the last month, but has scored when coming on as a substitute on three separate occasions.
Defensively, it’s possible that Robin Le Normand could come on for more minutes. The Frenchman suffered a head injury against Real Madrid in September and has been eased back into action to avoid any serious setbacks related to his concussion. He got his first minutes in La Liga as a late substitute against Getafe last weekend, but could feature more prominently here if needed.
