Atletico Madrid vs. Real Sociedad: Team News, Preview, Live Stream and TV Info
Atletico Madrid will welcome Real Sociedad to the Vicente Calderon on Tuesday, as the defending champions look for their second win in La Liga in the space of four days.
On Saturday, Diego Simeone's side brushed past bottom-placed Cordoba with a minimum of fuss, as first-half goals from Antoine Griezmann and Saul Niguez effectively ended the contest prior to the break.
The three points were extremely valuable for Los Colchoneros, who moved back into third place on the table thanks to Valencia's scoreless draw with Villarreal at the Mestalla on Sunday. And with Los Che set for a difficult meeting with Athletic Bilbao at the San Mames in this midweek round, Atleti could potentially establish a small gap between themselves and Nuno Espirito Santo's side with another victory against Real Sociedad.
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In teams news for the hosts, centre-back Miranda will again be available for selection, having completed his two-match ban for his red card against Espanyol. However, with another strong display at the Nuevo Arcangel, Jose Gimenez could easily retain his place alongside compatriot Diego Godin.
But Simeone will be forced into a slight reshuffle at the back regardless, with Juanfran suspended for this match after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season on Saturday.
After completing his comeback from injury against Cordoba, Saul is also likely to be rested rather than put through two successive games with minimal rest in between. If that does occur, Arda Turan will come back into the XI and take his place on the right side of the midfield.
There's also a chance Simeone could opt for Fernando Torres over Mario Mandzukic, given that the Croatian's scoreless run extended to five games in Andalusia on the weekend.
The visitors, meanwhile, come into this clash amid their best run of results this season.
Despite being forced to settle for a draw at Malaga on Saturday, David Moyes' men have picked up 13 points from a possible 18 since late February—a run kickstarted by a valuable 4-3 victory over Sevilla.
Ahead of their meeting with the defending champions, La Real will also be buoyed by their strong record against La Liga's elite this season. Remarkably, among the club's nine wins in 2014-15, three have come against Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
On Tuesday, it's possible star striker Carlos Vela could return to the starting XI, after Moyes opted for caution and left the Mexican out of the squad for the clash with Malaga—though it's more likely he'll start on the bench.
The Scot will also have to make a change in defence, after Ion Ansotegi picked up his fifth yellow card of the campaign on Saturday.
Date: Tuesday, April 7
Time: 7 p.m. BST / 2 p.m. EDT / 8 p.m. local
Venue: Estadio Vicente Calderon, Madrid
TV Info: Sky Sports (UK), beIN Sports (U.S.)
Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), beIN Sports CONNECT (U.S.)
Form Lines
| W: 2-0 vs. Cordoba | D: 1-1 vs. Malaga |
| W: 2-0 vs. Getafe | W: 3-1 vs. Cordoba |
| W: 1-0 vs. Bayer Leverkusen | W: 1-0 vs. Getafe |
| D: 0-0 vs. Espanyol | W: 1-0 vs. Espanyol |
| D: 1-1 vs. Valencia | L: 0-2 vs. Valencia |
| D: 0-0 vs. Sevilla | W: 4-3 vs. Sevilla |
Predicted Formations
Players to Watch
Due to Juanfran's suspension for Tuesday's clash, Jesus Gamez—the right-back who has regularly been used as a makeshift left-back recently—is likely to switch across into his natural position on the other side of the back four against Real Sociedad.
That will open up the left-back post for Guilherme Siqueira, one of Atleti's major summer signings who's yet to win the trust of Simeone at the Vicente Calderon.
Indeed, the regular sight of Gamez on the left side of the defence has been a major blow to Siqueira's stock, given that it should be the Brazilian who's consistently covering for the injured Cristian Ansaldi.
Unseen since the 1-1 draw with Valencia in early March, Tuesday's match represents a chance for Siqueira to stake his claim.
For Real Sociedad, defender Inigo Martinez is one to keep an eye on.
A strong, robust centre-back, the 23-year-old has been ever-present for La Real this season, playing a total of 2,430 minutes in La Liga—the most of any of Moyes' players in the current campaign, per WhoScored.com.
Against a powerful and physically intimidating Atletico outfit, Martinez's appetite for the battle will be critically important in quelling the hosts' threat in the air and scoring prowess from set pieces.
But the Basque defender is also in the midst of repairing his once-soaring reputation, after a poor start to the season damaged his stock significantly. Under Moyes, Martinez has certainly reversed the tide, and Tuesday is a chance for the former Real Madrid target to showcase his best in the capital.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Atletico Madrid: 100/303
Draw: 17/4
Real Sociedad: 17/2
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