La Liga: Atletico Madrid vs Valencia; Match Preview

31/03/13  La Liga Super Sunday, as high-flying Atlético will look to prove that their perfect start to  the campaign is no fluke when they head out to the Mestalla to take on their hosts Valencia.
Time: 21:00

FT: Atletico Madrid 1-1 Valencia


6' Falcao
5' Jones

Both the teams have been in reasonably good recent form. Valencia have lost just a single game in their previous eight matches. They have won four and drawn three of the remaining matches. They face a difficult task because Atletico have suffered just one home defeat in the whole season so far.

Atletico have lost their terrific season-opening form; still they are a great side at home. Their record in the last eight games goes like this: four wins, one draw, and three defeats. Atletico must win this match if they are to keep the race for second spot alive.

Valencia are 15 points behind Atletico Madrid and ranked 5^th in La Liga after Real Sociedad. Atletico Madrid who are going in top form are behind Real Madrid with just 1 point.

With Barcelona streaking away with the league, the fight for Europe, and relegation, have become the focus of the La Liga run-in.

Last 5 Matches of Both the Teams:

  Atletico Madrid     

Valencia

Men to Watch:

Radamel Falcao:

Falcao made his Atlético debut on 10 September away to Valencia CF. Falcao scored two hat-tricks at the start of the 2012–13 season; first in the La Liga game against 2012 Europa League finalists Athletic Bilbao,^[7 and the second in the defeat of Chelsea, winning the 2012 UEFA Super Cup by a score of 4–1, on 31 August 2012.  At the same time, Falcao became the first player in history to score a hat trick in a UEFA Super Cup final in its current format. Falcao is on 3rd number of the list of Most Goalscorer in La Liga with 21 goals. Radamel  Falcao with 21 goals in his 25 appearances. Juanfran is suspended due to a red card and Tiago is still out due to his broken arm.

Roberto Soldado:

Meanwhile Valencia’s striker Roberto Soldado is also in great form. He is also in top 5 goal scorers  list at 5^th spot with 14 goals so far. He was the man for Valencia when they defeated Atletico Madrid in 2012 scoring a stunner and lead his team with 2-0 victory.

Head to Head Statistics : Atlético Madrid vs Valencia Year up to 2013

The Soccer Teams Atlético Madrid and Valencia played 26 Games up to today.

	Atlético Madrid	Valencia
Win	8	10
Loss	10	8
Draw	8	8
Ø Goals per Match	1	1.3

Valencia 1-1 Atletico Madrid