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Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Game Preview, Odds, Picks & Predictions

The title race isn’t looking good for Atletico Madrid, but the La Liga reigning champions won’t stop fighting until the end. That’s one of the advantages of having Diego Simeone as your head coach because he’s also a born motivator.

Los Colchoneros are offering a +170 price in the sportsbook for their upcoming matchup against Villarreal. That’s good enough considering that the Yellow Submarine won its last four games in a row.

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Game Preview, Odds, Picks & Predictions
OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid 2022 La Liga Fixture 21

Yellow Submarine Aiming for Top Five

Villarreal finished the first half of the season on a roll. The Yellow Submarine’s four-game winning streak included beating Rayo Vallecano and Real Sociedad, both better positioned than them.

Most recently, they crushed Levante 5-0 with Gerard Moreno as the Man of the Match after scoring twice. Levante is sitting in last place, but not all teams have taken advantage of that like Villarreal did.

Since Moreno got back from an injury, Villarreal became a scoring machine. They won their last four games by a 15-3 aggregate. Moreno scored in each game and had two goals in each of the last three. That’s something that not even Karim Benzema, the league’s top scorer, has done.

That could be enough for you to consider including them in your soccer picks, but there’s more. The Yellow Submarine has been considerably better when playing at home. They own a 6-2-2 record, while they’re 1-5-3 on the road.

For Sunday’s matchup, they are also offering a +180 price. That gives you an idea on how good both are. That also means that if you place a $100 bet on the winner, your payout would be $280. Not bad, right?

Villarreal’s predicted lineup: Geronimo Rulli; Juan Foyth, Raul Albiol, Pau Torres, Alfonso Pedraza; Yeremi Pino, Dani Parejo, Etienne Capoue, Moi Gomez; Manu Trigueros, Gerard Moreno.

Atletico Madrid Got a Break

For the first time since Simeone took over, Atletico Madrid lost four domestic games in a row. Fortunately for them, that was before the end of the year break.

They started 2022 with a huge 2-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano. It was huge because losing would have meant falling to sixth place. They currently are in fourth. Angel Correa, who was replacing the injured Antoine Griezmann, scored both goals.

The French striker remains questionable, but Koke, Hector Herrera and Joao Felix received authorization to return. All three tested positive for COVID-19 several days ago.

Atletico is well known for its defensive style, but don’t underestimate its attacking unit, especially with those players coming back. They’ve scored 31 goals; only Real Madrid and Real Betis have scored more.

Defensively, Kieran Trippier just left the team to join Newcastle. Simeone trusted him a lot, but this will be a great opportunity for Felipe Augusto to prove his worth. The Brazilian is ready to take the right back

Atletico Madrid’s predicted lineup: Jan Oblak; Sime Vrsaljko, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Mario Hermoso; Marcos Llorente, Thomas Lemar, Koke, Rodrigo de Paul, Yannick Carrasco; Antoine Griezmann, Luis Suarez.

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Head to Head

  • Previous Matches: 41
  • Villarreal Victories: 14 (52 goals)
  • Atletico Madrid Victories: 15 (55 goals)
  • Draws: 12

 

The first meeting of the season between the two ended with a draw, like we predicted. I hope you have followed our soccer betting advice. The match ended 2-2, but Villarreal scored three goals. That’s right, Atletico was able to tie thanks to an own goal with no time left on the clock.

We’re talking about a very even series. Atletico owns a 3-5-2 record in its last 10 meetings with Villarreal. The total went under in seven of those games, but not so fast. Both attacking units are inspired.

 

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Game Information

  • Date: Sunday
  • Time: 3 p.m. ET
  • Location: El Madrigal, Villarreal
  • Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Live Stream: fuboTV

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Betting Lines

Villarreal vs Atletico Madrid Prediction

This is the Game of the Week, no doubt about it. Both teams have regained confidence and are aiming for the top four to qualify for the UEFA Champions League. Moreno is on fire, while Atletico’s attacking unit will get a huge boost, it doesn’t even matter if Griezmann returns.

Expect another fast-paced match and another draw. However, this time our betting online advice is to go with the over.

Score Prediction: Villarreal 2, Atletico Madrid 2

Pick: Over 2½ goals (+115)

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