By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: 07:40 EST, 20 December 2024 | Updated: 07:40 EST, 20 December 2024
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - When Atletico Madrid led the Spanish league in spending on summer transfers, Diego Simeone's club was making a bet it could challenge for its first title since 2021.
On Saturday, Atletico can move to the top of the table with a win at a Barcelona side that is struggling to reproduce its great start to the campaign. And to make matters worse for Hansi Flick, the hosts will be missing injured star Lamine Yamal for its last game before a short winter break.
Atletico has pulled level on points with Barcelona after reeling off six wins in a row in La Liga, while Barcelona has won only one of its last six league games.
Atletico midfielder Pablo Barrios expects a difficult game despite the contrasting form of the opponents.
"What is happening to them is kind of the opposite of what happened to us," Barrios told Spanish radio Cadena SER. "When people were doubting us they were playing incredible, and even though they have lost some games now, they still have great players and I am sure it is going to a very tough game."
Flick was earning praise from Barcelona fans and even Lionel Messi after the German´s great start when Barcelona was scoring in bunches and rolled off win after win, and it looked like the top title candidate when it crushed defending champion Real Madrid 4-0 in late October.
Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Slovan Bratislava at Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
But that turned out to be a peak of performance from which Barcelona has subsequently fallen.
Barcelona has only two wins in its last eight games overall, a bad run during which it has endured humbling home defeats to Liga minnows Las Palmas and Leganes.
Atletico´s trajectory has gone the opposite direction.
Simeone´s team had some troubles early on as it worked to integrate newcomers Julián Álvarez, Conor Gallagher, Alexander Sorloth, and Robin Le Normand.
Atletico was in fourth place and 10 points behind Barcelona on Oct. 27 - the last time it lost a match.
Álvarez and Sorloth are now clicking up front with veteran leader Antoine Griezmann, and the team is on a streak of 11 victories in a row across all competitions. Griezmann has scored seven goals and Álvarez five in Atletico´s last six games. Sorloth struck to beat Getafe 1-0 last round and pull Atletico level on points with Barcelona.
Now it can take the lead of the competition with a win at Barcelona´s Olympic Stadium.
The fixture, while overshadowed by the "clasico" between Barcelona and Real Madrid, has become a must-see game in Spain ever since Simeone turned Atletico into a perennial title contender over a decade ago.
This edition of the matchup will pit Barcelona´s top-scoring attack with 50 goals against an Atletico defense that, along with Real Sociedad, has allowed a league-low 11 goals.
Yamal's ankle injury deprives Barcelona of the league's top assist maker (9).
Raphinha will likely replace Yamal on the right side of the attack to accompany Robert Lewandowski, who leads the league in scoring with 16 goals. Raphinha is the competition´s second leading scorer with 11 goals.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid will be hoping for a draw. It is in third place, one point back before hosting Sevilla on Sunday.
Both Atletico and Real Madrid have a game in hand on Barcelona.
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Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski challenges for the ball during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Leganes at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)
Atletico Madrid's head coach Diego Simeone watches from the team dugout before the start of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Slovan Bratislava at Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick reacts during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Barcelona at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Wednesday Dec. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Barcelona's Lamine Yamal fights for the ball against Dortmund's Ramy Bensebaini during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Barcelona at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Wednesday Dec. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)