Preview: FC Barcelona vs. Atletico Madrid – Team news and prediction.

A big match to end the weekend when Barcelona and Atletico face off in La Liga.

Both Barcelona and Atletico have 31 points in La Liga, four points behind the league leaders, Real Madrid. So, it's a match that ideally shouldn't be lost, as it could potentially lead to a 7-point gap behind Madrid, who play against Granada on Saturday. It's also the clash between two of the strongest strikers in the league, namely Antoine Griezmann and Robert Lewandowski. Both have been in good goal-scoring form this year, so it could very well be one of them who has a decisive impact on the match.

Last five meetings between Barcelona vs. Atletico: 
1-0: Barcelona vs. Atletico
0-1: Atletico vs. Barcelona
4-2: Barcelona vs. Atletico
2-0: Atletico vs. Barcelona
0-0: Barcelona vs. Atletico 

Barcelona has the upper hand over Atletico if you look at their recent matches, having won the last three. Matches between the two teams are usually closely contested, so tonight's game is likely to be no exception.

Team news: 
Pedri and Frenkie de Jong are finally back for Barcelona, but unfortunately, Gavi, another key midfield profile, will be unavailable for the rest of the season. Ter Stegen is doubtful, but there are hopes that he can be ready for the match; otherwise, Inaki Pena will continue in goal. Andreas Christensen has surprisingly ended up on the bench, much to the astonishment of several football fans. This means that Kounde and Araujo are expected to start in the defense.

Thomas Lemar and Vitolo are the only injuries that Simeone must deal with when selecting his starting 11. No major changes are expected compared to the midweek match against Feyenoord.

Barcelona expected lineup:
Pena; Cancelo, Kounde, Araujo, Balde; Pedri, Gundogan, De Jong; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Felix.

Atletico expected lineup: 
Oblak; Molina, Witsel, Gimenez, Hermoso, Riquelme; Llorente, Koke, De Paul; Morata, Griezmann

Prediction: 
A challenging match to predict, as it's typically close between these two clubs. However, we have a hunch that Atletico will deliver a strong performance, but whether it's enough for a victory remains to be seen. Four out of the last five head-to-head encounters have ended with under 2.5 goals, so based on the odds, we're going with that again.

Under 2.5 goals in the game at odds 2.07 at Bet365. 

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