Atletico Madrid host top of the table Feyenoord at the Civitas Metropolitano on Wednesday. Both sides played in two action packed games full of drama in matchday one.
Atletico Madrid
Diego Simeone’s Atletico have had a solid start to the new LaLiga campaign, winning five of their opening seven fixtures and only losing once. The boss is known for his pragmatic, defence first approach, but his side have been ruthless in front of goal, scoring 18 goals already. Simeone has found the perfect balance of attack and defence, as his side have also only conceded seven. They’ve also won every game at home which puts them in a very strong position for Wednesday.
In matchday one, it looked set that Atletico would walk away from Lazio with three points, thanks to a Pablo Barrios goal In the first half. The defensive unit didn’t look like it was going to be breached, despite Lazio having 18 shots, until their goalkeeper, Ivan Provedel, latched onto the end of a Luis Alberto cross to steal a point in the final seconds.
Feyenoord
Arne Slot’s side have been excellent in the Eredivisie this season, even though they are currently placed in fourth. Feyenoord are the leagues leading scorers with an astounding 26 goals in seven games, almost an average of four per ninety minutes. Mexican striker, Santiago Gimenez has netted ten of those and he will look to get off the mark in the UCL this week.
In Feyenoord’s Champions League opener, they hosted Celtic and comfortably won the tie 2-0, despite missing a penalty and playing against nine men for the last thirty minutes. Slot’s team were not overly impressive and the first half was even, but Celtic fell apart in the second period which ultimately confirmed the victory.
Verdict?
Atletico Madrid’s home form cannot be ignored but neither can Feyenoord’s unstoppable strike force. This game looks great for goals but I believe that the Spanish side will just steal all three points.
The final prediction is Atletico Madrid 2-1 Feyenoord, with the hosts priced at 3/5.
