Can Torres continue his fine scoring form against Barca?
The biggest problem facing Atletico Madrid, or any team taking on Barcelona, is trying to contain the free-scoring triumvirate of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar. The last 3 home games have seen 14 goals scored - 11 of those scored by ‘MSN’ - but they aren’t infallible. After a tight win away to Athletic Club, Barcelona lost at home to Deportivo Alavés dropping early points in the title race. They won’t be satisfied with a draw here if they want to keep pace with league leaders Real Madrid.
Atlético currently find themselves 4 points adrift of their neighbours. They drew their first two matches, managing just a single goal in that time. But it looks like Diego Simeone has got their attack firing again, scoring 10 goals in their last 3 games. With that in mind, there is certainly money to be made in this fixture courtesy of Bet365. New Bet365 customers receive a 100% deposit bonus. When you deposit £10 or more you will qualify for a matched amount to bet with, up to £200. Given the excellent markets on offer for this La Liga match up, you stand to win money from the match.
Despite the uncharacteristic wobble to begin their season, Atleti remain as resolute as ever at the back. They have conceded just a single goal in all competitions this season. While it’s unlikely that they’ll be able to stop Barcelona from scoring, Atleti’s defence will stifle much of their exploits. Only once in their last 12 league games has an opposition team been able to score more than a single goal against Atleti when Levante upset the odds them with a 2-1 win.
Luis Enrique experimented with Barcelona’s backline last week. It was meant to create more space for his front three to exploit, but could speak of a bigger underlying problem in Barcelona’s defence, one where Enrique is not completely confident what formation will be most effective. They have kept just 2 clean sheets in their last 5 games and it would have been 1 had Moussa Dembélé converted from the spot in Barcelona’s eventual 7-0 win over Celtic. Bet on both teams to score at 1.80 on Bet365.
Barcelona are the heavy favourites with the bookies and looking at the recent results between Barca and Atleti it’s easy to see why. Barcelona have bested Atletico Madrid in 7 of their last 8 meetings. However, Barcelona’s most recent wins were somewhat fortuitous. The Champions League match at Camp Nou saw Atletico play with just 10 men for almost an hour, so were unable to hold out for a result.
The result will feel more significant to Atletico Madrid than it will for Barcelona. They’ll want to atone for their errors on their last trip to Camp Nou and get their first La Liga win against Barcelona since February 2010. If they can get an early goal, Atleti’s formidable defence should be just enough to see them win or draw this match at 2.37.
It is expected that Kevin Gameiro will start ahead of Fernando Torres, with the Frenchman favoured for his pace. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t expect to see Torres at some point. He has made an appearance in each of Atlético’s matches this season and will offer something different to Gameiro up front.
Torres netted his first La Liga brace since returning to his boyhood club this weekend giving him, and Atlético Madrid, a boost at just the right time. Looking ahead to the match the forward said: “ [It] will be the toughest game we’ve played so far. We go [into the fixture] full of confidence.”
Barcelona are Torres’ favourite opponent scoring 11 goals against them, at least 2 more than he’s netted against any other team. And they aren’t all from his first stint with the club. Torres has found the back of the net in 3 of his last 4 appearances against the Catalan side. You can get Torres to score anytime at 4.33, but with his late introduction to the game you can back him as the last goalscorer at 11.00.
