Atletico Madrid will host Valencia at the Vicente Calderon as Diego Simeone’s men look to bounce back from recent their woes in La Liga.
In their last two games in La Liga, Atletico failed to register a single win, losing 2-1 against Barcelona at home before drawing 1-1 with Deportivo.
Striker Fernando Torres says he had “a fright” after being hospitalised by a head injury.
?? https://t.co/iRv9tCYkPs pic.twitter.com/GVpY15cRn8
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) March 4, 2017
The game against Deportivo was marred by an injury to striker Fernando Torres. Fortunately, the injury was not so serious and the forward has been released from the hospital on Thursday.
Fantastic news! Fernando @Torres has been discharged and has left the hospital: https://t.co/X0IuZt2Ld9 pic.twitter.com/dw3mKswLuq
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) March 3, 2017
Valencia, who had beaten Real Madrid two weeks ago, has lost a game and won one since. In their last game, they won against Leganes thanks to a goal from Eliaquim Mangala.
Team News: Atletico Madrid
Midfielder Saul Niguez is back from suspension and the Spaniard is likely to contribute in this game from the start. He should play in the right side of four-man midfield, as he is usually deployed there by his manager Diego Simeone.
The Rojiblancos captain Diego Godin is suspended for this game. In his place, Stefan Savic should start in the heart of defense. In the right side, Sime Vrsalijko should keep up his position.
? TRAINING ? First exercises in today’s session ? Let’s go, boys! ??? #AtletiValencia #GoAtleti pic.twitter.com/phf3uux0MN
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) March 4, 2017
After suffering the horrific injury, Fernando Torres will miss this game. However, the injury is not lengthy as previously feared and the former Chelsea man will be soon available to play.
Atletico Madrid: Predicted Line-up (4-2-3-1)
Oblak – Vrsaljko, Gimenez, Savic, Luis – Niguez, Koke, Gabi, Carrasco – Griezmann, Gameiro
Team News: Valencia
Portuguese winger Nani will miss this game as he suffered a muscular injury in his thigh against Real Madrid. The former Manchester United man will be a huge loss for his side. Carlos Soler will be used in the starting lineup to fill the void left by Nani.
In attack, Fabian Orellana should play at the left as he returns from suspension. The addition of the forward will be a big boost for the Valencia outfit.
For the right-back position, Martin Montoya and Joao Cancelo will battle it out while in midfield, Dani Parejo will be joined by Perez.
?Final #AtletiValencia preparations? https://t.co/dMCt0mZI4P pic.twitter.com/EBE1yYyLtd
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf_en) March 4, 2017
Valencia: Predicted Line-up (4-4-1-1)
Alves – Cancelo, Garay, Mangala, Gaya – Perez, Parejo, Soler – Orellana, Zaza, Munir
Atletico vs. Valencia: Head-to-Head (H2H) in La Liga
Total games: 153 Atletico wins: 56 Valencia wins: 57 Draws: 40
Atletico vs. Valencia: TV Schedule and Channel
In the U.S., the match will be live on beIN SPORTS USA, beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV, and beIN SPORTS en Espanol. In the U.K., the game will be broadcast on SKY GO Extra, Sky Go UK, NOW TV UK, and Sky Sports 5/HD UK. For other regions, the TV schedule can be found at the link here .
Atletico Madrid vs. Valencia: Prediction
It will be difficult to choose a favorite in this game as both teams cancel out each other’s strengths and weaknesses at the moment.
Atletico has struggled recently as the Rojiblancos have failed to win last two league games. Their confidence doesn’t look good right now, and the loss of Godin is not going to help this cause.
Atletico has failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six games. Hence, the new defense partnership between Gimenez and Savic will be a trial in a sense for the manager.
Valencia has won all but one of their last four games, so they are confident going into this game. However, all of their last three victories has come in home and the away game against Atletico will be a mountain to climb for the visitors.
Final Predicted Score: Atletico Madrid 2-1 Valencia Atletico vs. Valencia: Betting Tips and Odds
- Atletico win: 1/2
- A draw: 10/3
- Valencia win: 6/1
The odds were provided by Sports WillianHill .
Key Tips/Stats to consider
- Atletico has won their three games against Valencia.
- Atletico Madrid has failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six games.
- However, they have scored in each one of their recent six encounters.
- Atletico is unbeaten in nine of their last 10 games.
- Valencia has won three of its last four games in all competitions.
The stats were provided by Soccerway .
[Featured Image by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images]