News
SÁB 11.01.2025
Atlético de Madrid are preparing to host CA Osasuna at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Sunday as they aim to extend their impressive winning streak. Having played one game fewer Rojillos have what it takes to pull another upset over Simeone’sn the LALIGA EA SPORTS table. Boasting the best defence in the Spanish football top flight, Atleti are the only team to remain unbeaten on home soil this season. They have won seven of their nine matches in front of their home fans thus far, boasting the second-best home record in the league behind Los Blancos.
As for CA Osasuna, Los Rojillos will travel to the Spanish capital aiming to get back to winning ways by grabbing their first league victory since early November. Following a 1-0 win over Real Valladolid on home soil back on November 2nd, Vicente Moreno’s side have registered four draws and two losses in their past six league games.
The last team to win at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano
CA Osasuna may have recorded just one road win (2-0 at Real Sociedad on Matchday 11) this season, but they were the last LALIGA EA SPORTS team to celebrate a victory at Atlético de Madrid’s ground. Los Colchoneros haven’t lost a single home game domestically since May 19th, when Los Rojillos cruised past Atleti with a 4-1 victory in the capital.
That day, Raúl García de Haro opened the scoring in the 26th minute, with Aimar Oroz doubling CA Osasuna’s lead seven minutes into the second half. Álvaro Morata pulled one back a few minutes later, but the visitors responded with goals from García de Haro and Lucas Torró to record their first victory in 11 games away at Atlético de Madrid. In fact, their previous road victory against Los Colchoneros dated back to April of 2009, when CA Osasuna also netted four times in a 4-2 victory at Atleti’s former ground, the Estadio Vicente Calderón.
In pursuit of the winter champions’ crown
Having registered just one league loss (1-0 at Real Betis on Matchday 11) this term, Atlético de Madrid have made the most of FC Barcelona’s recent drop in form to get back in the title race. Should Diego Simeone’s side beat CA Osasuna and extend their winning streak across all competitions to 14 games, which would be a club record, they’d also be crowned winter champions. This may be nothing but a virtual accolade, given to the team that sits top after 19 of the 38 matchdays, but it should be noted that over the last 20 years the winter champions went all the way to the league title 17 times.
In fact, one of the few occasions where the winter champions didn’t manage to clinch the trophy was in 2013/14, when FC Barcelona won the virtual accolade but it was Simeone’s Atleti who celebrated the title. Curiously, Atlético de Madrid have won a total of 11 league titles, but they were crowned winter champions in just three of these seasons (1965/66, 1995/96 and 2020/21). As for Simeone, he has seen his team top the table after 19 rounds on two occasions, once as a player and once as a coach, with Atlético de Madrid winning both trophies, in 1995/96 and 2020/21, respectively.
A victory on Sunday would see Los Rojiblancos overtake Real Madrid in the table, taking Simeone’s side one point ahead of their city rivals and six points above fellow title contenders, FC Barcelona. To do so, they need to get past a solid CA Osasuna side that will look to rekindle memories of last season’s triumph at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano. It remains to be seen if Los Rojillos have what it takes to pull another upset over Simeone’s side or whether Atlético de Madrid will end the first round of the 2024/25 LALIGA EA SPORTS season top of the table.
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