Placed on the 38th level on points, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will face off for the ultimate Saturday evening match, with each potential victor securing the premier position in La Liga prior to the year 2025.
Barcelona are yet at the top thanks to goal-difference, but Atletico, who have a match in hand over the leaders of La Liga, go into this clash as the in-form side, having won their last 11 games across all competitions under Simeone.
So far this season in La Liga, Barcelona has won 12, drawn two and lost four of their 18 matches with 38 points, putting them on top of the tree but only on goal difference from both Atletico and Real Madrid who have only played 17 matches so far and are waiting for the next round of games in Spain’s top tier football competition.
Celta Vigo’s moreso earlier this season under Villas Boas looked unstoppable for the premier league and this term this has taien a lurch, registering only a single victory out of the last six games in the league, although thier plight has been eased by three failures.
The last match up was a shocking loss 1-0 at home to Leganes and Hansi Flick’s side has now failed to win their last two matches at their temporary home against Las Palmas and Leganes.
The Catalans find themselves second in the Champions League log, three points behind Liverpool, thus the first half of the campaign has been very productive for the team, but another loss at the weekend will be disastrous and the team may end the year in the third place in the group.
It has been difficult for the capital giants in this match lately, as Atletico has not scored a league goal against Barcelona since February 2022 and their last victory against Saturday's opponents in the top division was in October 2021.
However, Simeone's team will be in great form going into the game because they have won all 11 of their previous games across all competitions, including their past six league games against Getafe, Sevilla, Real Valladolid, Alaves, and Las Palmas.
Last time out, Atletico moved into second place in the table, level on points with Barcelona, thanks to a goal from Alexander Sorloth, who came off the bench to score the game-winning goal against Getafe. This was especially important with one game remaining.
Antoine Griezmann, Sorloth, and Julian Alvarez have 19 league goals between them in 2024–25, but Atletico has once again played superb defense this season, giving up just 11 goals, which is tied for the best record with Real Sociedad.
Even though Rojiblancos won the final of their 11 La Liga titles in 2020–21, they are deserving of recognition as contenders at this point in the season, and a win on Saturday would send a strong statement.
Lamine Yamal, a 17-year-old who has once again been in outstanding form this season, will not be available for Barcelona until the beginning of 2025 because of an ankle injury.
Marc Bernal and Marc-Andre ter Stegen are long-term absences for the Catalan powerhouses, while Andreas Christensen and Ansu Fati both have remote prospects of rejoining the team.
After a protracted absence due to a hamstring issue that necessitated surgery, Ronald Araujo is now fully recovered, although he is anticipated to be included in the starting lineup for Saturday night's first whistle.
