Valladolid vs Atletico Madrid Preview:
Possible starting lineupss:
Valladolid:
Masip; Janko, El Yamiq, Gonzalez, Olaza; Mesa, Fernandez, Fede; Jota, Weissman, Plano
Atletico Madrid:
Oblak; Gimenez, Felipe, Hermoso; Trippier, Saul, Koke, Llorente, Carrasco; Correa, Luis Suarez
Atletico and Real Madrid are fighting for the title in LaLiga. The former have 83 points, two more then their city-rivals. Atletico could secure the title on Saturday if they beat Valladolid at the Estadio Jose Zorrilla, regardless of the result between Real Madrid and Villarreal. But Valladolid also need the points in the relegation battle as they are in the drop zone. The White and Violets have collect just 31 points, which has left them second from the bottom. They are two points from 17th-placed Huesca (host Valencia) and 18th-placed Elche (host Athletic Bilbao in the last round) and need to win on Saturday to stand any chance of remaining in Primera. Nevertheless, the victory against Atletico Madrid could not be enough, Valladolid depend from the results on other two venues in Huesca and Elche. The actual form is poor, they will enter the match off the back of a 4:1 defeat at Real Sociedad in the last round. Even worse, Sergio Gonzalez's side have no win on the last eleven matches. Last time Valladolid have won at the beginning of March when beat Getafe with 2:1. The hosts have some additional issues ahead of this match. Raul Garcia and Kenan Kodro are sidelined through injury, while Fabian Orellana is rated as highly doubtful. To be worse, two players are suspended - Ruben Alcaraz has accumulated yellow cards, while Roberto Jimenez was sent off on the last match.
This is a good season for Atletico Madrid, they are holding the first place almost from the beginning of the season. They had 10 points advantage at the end of January, and the opportunity of it being more because Atletico had three matches in hand. But then they experienced some sort of crisis. Diego Simeone's men managed to obtain just six victories in February, March and April. The season could end in catastrophic way if they fail to beat Valladolid on Saturday. Real Madrid have better head-to-head record, they won 2:0 as hosts and drew 1:1 at Wanda. There is no margin for error for Simeone's men, a draw combined with a win for Los Blancos would mean that Real Madrid win the title. Last weekend was very dramatic, the Rojiblancos came from behind to beat Osasuna 2:1 thanks to a late strike from Luis Suarez. Previously, Renan Lodi equalized in the 83rd minute and that sped up the intensity of attacks. With three minutes to go, the Uruguayan striker turned up to end his goal drought. The winning goal send his Atletico teammates into a state of frenzy, while coach Diego Simeone was in delirium. But something else is important for my pick - Atletico have won three matches in May and all three victories were narrow. They won 1:0 against Elche, 2:1 against Real Sociedad and 2:1 against Osasuna. If something is a problem, that's the away form. Atletico have just one win on the last six league matches played on road. Simeone has some additional problem as key defender Stevan Savic is suspended. His absence is a huge handicap. That's not all as Thomas Lemar is expected to miss out with a hamstring problem.
Valladolid vs Atletico Madrid Prediction:
Atletico Madrid will try to win here and to secure the title in a dramatic season finale. Valladolid, meanwhile, are desperate for points in order to avoid relegation. I expect a tense match, lot of nervous and yellow cards, maybe even some red. Atletico are favorites, the quality is on their side. They have won three matches in May and all three victories were narrow. So, I expect a tight match and I don't expect a high victory for Atletico.
Valladolid vs Atletico Madrid Pick: Valladolid +1.5 @ 1.88 with Unibet