Real Madrid VS Atletico Madrid Match Prediction

Champions League titles have ran through Madrid in the last three years, and this year will be no different.  In 2014 and 2016, Real won in dramatic fashion over their closest rivals to break their hearts.  The first in a 4-1 win that no doubt was harsh on Atleti.  The second, coming last year, was a win on penalties.  In 43 matches, Real Madrid still have the advantage over Atletico with 25 wins to Atleti's seven.  They have drawn 11 times as well.  Here's how the last five matches have went between the two:

Apr 8, 2017: Real 1-1 Atletico
Nov 19, 2016: Atletico 0-3 Real
May 28, 2016: Real 1-1 Atletico (UEFA Champions League Final)
Feb 7, 2016: Real 0-1 Atletico
Oct 4, 2015: Atletico 1-1 Real

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Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid Prediction

This tie will be hanging on a knife's edge heading in the second leg.

Correct Score Prediction: Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid

Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid Betting Tips and Odds

Bet365 have the following odds available for this match:

Real Madrid are at ¾ to win, a draw is at 11/4, and an Atletico Madrid win is at 7/2.

Atleti's double chance odds are marginal at 11/10 for this match.

Both teams to score is set at 19/20 for yes and 4/5 for no.

A 1-0 win for Real Madrid at full time could get you 11/1 odds.

To qualify for the final, Real Madrid are at 4/7 and Atletico are at 11/8.

Reason: The bookmakers are favoring Real Madrid here due to them being the home side and the team that are the current champions of this competition.  They've also beaten Atletico for this trophy the last two times and have an historical head to head advantage, so those will play a role in it.

Team News

Zinedine Zidane will be unable to call upon veteran center back Pepe and winger Gareth Bale for this match.

Key Man

Atletico Madrid will no doubt hate the face of Real captain Sergio Ramos.  Ramos has scored twice against them in the finals played between the two.  In the first, it was his goal that took them to extra time when he thumped in a late header.  Ramos has scored some crucial goals for Real this season as well to help his side win important matches.  He has 10 goals to his name, from center back, which is really a very outrageous total to have!  All of Ramos' experience will be needed on this night at the back as well, as Atletico will look to press on occasion and counter as frequently as possible with lots of pace.

Team Form

Real Madrid have four wins and a loss in their last five matches in all competitions.  A 2-3 win over Sporting Gijon with the 'B' team was followed by a 4-2 extra time win over Bayern Munich.  They then slipped up to a 2-3 home league defeat to Barcelona, but have rebounded since with a away 2-6 win over Deportivo and a 2-1 home win over Valencia on Saturday.

How They Got Here

Real Madrid progressed from a group containing Sporting Lisbon, Borussia Dortmund, and Legia Warsaw in the preliminary stage.  They won four times, and they drew twice to Dortmund to finish second.  However, they got a good draw in Napoli for the round of 16, and they won both legs 3-1 to easily progress.  In the quarterfinals, they got a 1-2 win over Bayern Munich in the first leg before coming home and having the score equaled in normal time.  Extra time would see them win 4-2 on the night and 6-3 on aggregate to advance them to this tie.

Expected Line-up: 4-3-3

Team News

Diego Simeone will be without right backs Juanfran and Sime Vrsaljko.  Defensive midfielder Augusto Fernandez remains out, and winger Yannick Carrasco will join him.  Jose Gimenez  is the newest addition to the injury list after getting injured playing at... right back... on Saturday.

Key Man

Atletico's run to this semi-final has largely been done without the help of Kevin Gameiro.  The 29 year old French striker has been out for a while, but he has returned to good effect of late.  His two goals at the weekend against Osasuna will give him a lot of confidence, and it will do Antoine Griezmann a world of good to have his main strike partner back beside him again.  Gameiro has 16 goals in total, and he can be the beneficiary of Griezmann's running in this match here as Atletico will look to counterattack this Real side into submission.

Team Form

Atletico Madrid have three wins, a loss, and a draw in their last five matches in all competitions.  A 3-0 win over Osasuna in La Liga was followed by a 1-1 draw at Leicester City.  They then won 0-1 away to Espanyol before losing 0-1 at home to Villarreal.  On Saturday, though, they bounced back in a big way with a 0-5 away win over Las Palmas.

How They Got Here

Atletico came through the group stage with five wins and one loss to see them finish in first place.  Their group included Bayern Munich, Rostov, and PSV Eindhoven.  Their one slip up was away to Bayern, but it was the very last group match.  In the round of 16, Atletico drew struggling Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen.  They won the first leg away 2-4 before holding a 0-0 draw in the second leg to easily advance.  In the quarterfinals, they faced pesky Leicester City.  A 1-0 home win in the first leg saw them through after a 1-1 draw in the second leg.

Expected Line-up: 4-4-2

Gone are the days where Atletico are looked down upon by their rivals. They are a real threat, as they have shown with two runs to the final in recent memory. But both came against Real, and they lost both times. Atletico, as if they needed any added motivation, now have the chance to finally break their duck against Real here. This is what had broke Simeone\'s heart and almost led to him not returning. He will absolutely be dying to win here, and his players have been known to run through walls for their manager. And all of that together with the fact that Real haven\'t been playing the greatest and that there has never been a team win two Champions League titles in a row, and you have to like Atletico\'s chances in this tie.

It\'s very rare in these matches that you see either side score more than one goals in normal time. It has happened, but they seem to be mere outliers. In 2015 in the quarterfinals, these two sides met and there was only one goal in the entire tie. We could be set for that sort of tie yet again this time around.