Verdict: Atletico Madrid win

Best odds: 2.10

Bookmaker: ZetBet

Villarreal host Atletico Madrid in the closing match of the 30th La Liga round. The match will be played on Monday night at the Estadio de la Ceramica in front of 20, 000 fans. The visitors need a cold shower following the latest shameful results.

Villareal

A new season, another disappointment for the Yellow Submarine supporters. Villarreal’s glory days are long gone for the Castellon province outfit who struggles in mid-table this term with 38 points.

Although seen as the ideal manager to propel the team into contention for European Cup qualification, Marcellinho has failed to live up to expectations. With 38 points accumulated after 29 rounds, Villarreal have a small chance of playing European football next season.

The Europa League failure in the last 16 at the hands of Marseille has left Marcellino’s team in limbo, with no particular target to fight for this term. The South of France squad outclassed Villarreal at Velodrome (4-0) thus revealing a rather fragile Spanish defence. This is backed by the results in the domestic league where the Yellow Submarine conceded 51 goals in 29 games.

However, the hosts still managed to tighten things up and win five of their last six competitive matches. The 1-0 home win over Valencia closed an excellent period in La Liga with four consecutive wins. Moreover, the players coached by Marcelinho have performed at the highest level as of late, defeating Betis and Valencia on the road. The current turn of trends might give their fans slight hope for an upset this time out.

Team News

Villarreal has no fresh injuries. Yeremi Pinno is out for the remainder of the season following a terrible cruciate ligament rupture that needed surgery. Denis Suarez joined him in the recovery room after sustaining a tendon rupture at the beginning of February that will see him out of action until summer.

Defensive midfielder Ramon Terrats is expected to have a full return by mid-April. His meniscus recovery is progressing well and the young player will soon join the squad.

Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid have got some catching up to do in the league following the recent string of disappointing results. The players coached by Diego Simeone are outside the top 4 and need a win against Villarreal to push for next season’s Champions League qualification.

Although Atleti have shown inconsistency in the league, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League is a notable achievement. Despite losing the first leg at the Meazza against Inter (1-0), the Madrid side played a perfect game at the Metropolitano securing a 2-1 win just to go and finish the job at the penalty shootout.

However, Atleti had an inexplicable slump domestically, as they lost the last two league games. During that time they even failed to score once. The shock 2-0 defeat at Cadiz was followed by a Metropolitano capitulation to Barcelona, with the Blaugrana side winning by a 0-3 scoreline.

Diego Simeone’s team needs a lot of work because they haven’t been able to win any of their last six away games. In addition, the Atleti have lost four of those encounters, building a never-seen negative streak under the Argentine boss.

With Girona in top form at the end of this term, the hosts are set for a crunch battle with Athletic Bilbao for the fourth place. As the season draws to a close, Los Colchoneros play a home match against Girona, between their quarterfinal Champions League knockout clash against Borussia Dortmund. Therefore, the upcoming game against Villarreal might be the perfect chance for Atleti to build momentum.

Team News

Diego Simeone will struggle to field a competitive lineup with five key players sidelined for the Villareal match. Vitolo, Mario Hemoso, Jose Maria Gimenez, Marcos Paulo, and Thomas Lemar will not be participating in the game. Additionally, Yeremi Pino faces a suspension if he gets booked.

Key factors to consider

• Villarreal are undefeated in the last 9 La Liga games
• The Yellow Submarine failed to win against Atletico Madrid in any of their last 5 bouts played on Estadio de la Ceramica
• Marcellino’s team was knocked out from the Europa League by Marseille, 5-3 on aggregate
• Despite reaching the Champions League quarter-finals, Atletico Madrid are struggling in La Liga
• Diego Simeone’s players failed to win any of their last 6 away games played across all competitions
• Atletico Madrid are undefeated in the last 5 Villareal visits (W1D4)

Conclusion

Atletico Madrid’s firepower will put Villareal to the test in a pivotal match closing the 30th round. Even though the hosts are in a good run of form at the moment, the guests can sink the Yellow Submarine. We expect the visitors to respond strongly and the most recent away losses to be cleared with a win at Estadio de la Ceramica.

Verdict: Atletico Madrid win

Best odds: 2.10

Bookmaker: ZetBet