Osasuna vs Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid aims to prolong their three-match unbeaten streak as they head to El Sadar for a La Liga showdown with Osasuna on Thursday.

Conversely, the home side is eager to rediscover their winning form after managing only a single point from their past two outings.

Osasuna fueled their European hopes with an impressive April, securing three straight wins over Girona, Real Valladolid, and Sevilla.

Yet, their push for a European spot has faltered recently, highlighted by a 4-2 loss to Villarreal on the road earlier this month.

They managed to avoid another defeat in their Sunday visit to the Benito Villamarin, where star forward Ante Budimir netted a 75th-minute equalizer to counter Cucho Hernandez’s opening goal, resulting in a 1-1 stalemate with Betis, leaving Los Rojillos in 11th place, two points shy of the top eight.

Osasuna now returns to the comfort of El Sadar for consecutive matches against Atletico and Espanyol, before wrapping up the season against Alaves, aware that a robust end to the campaign is crucial to clinch European qualification for the second time in three years.

Regrettably for Osasuna, they often struggle against Atletico, having lost 12 of their last 13 La Liga meetings (W1).

Their sole victory in that span occurred at the Metropolitano in May 2024, while their last home triumph over Atleti was a 3-0 result in February 2014.

Atletico Madrid may have missed out on the league title this season, but they’ve guaranteed another season of Champions League action, locking in a top-five spot with a commanding 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad at home on Saturday.

Alexander Sorloth struck three times in 11 minutes, setting a new La Liga record for the earliest hat-trick, and the fastest in the competition’s history, with the trio of goals coming in three minutes and 57 seconds.

The Norwegian added a fourth goal before the half-hour mark, sealing a crushing 4-0 win over his former team and securing a third straight home league victory for Diego Simeone’s squad.

With 70 points from 35 games, Atleti is almost certain to place third for the third time in four seasons.

Atletico will be eager to end the season strongly as they try to gather confidence ahead of this summer's Club World Cup, even if they may not have much to gain from their next three games against Osasuna, Real Betis, and Girona.

Despite having only won one of their last five away league games, Los Colchoneros will still be confident that they can win Thursday's game because they have won all six of their previous away encounters with Osasuna, including a 2-0 triumph on their most recent trip to El Sadar in September 2023.