This article is part of our Daily Fantasy Soccer Cheat Sheet series.
Deportivo Alaves and Atletico Madrid will face off on the match day 29 in the Spanish La Liga at the Estadio de Mendizorroza on Saturday.
The clash is a top-of-the table tie as the home side are currently placed on the fifth position, just two points behind fourth-placed Getafe, whereas the visitors are currently placed second on the league table, just two points ahead of third-placed Real Madrid.
Therefore, both teams will be eyeing a positive result as the battle for a top-four finish intensified with the season coming to the final stages.
Alaves are going in the match high on confidence as they've managed to win three and draw three out of last six matches in all competition and manager Abelardo will be optimistic of his team's chances against one of the best team in the country.
On the other hand, Atletico will enter the match low on confidence after Los Rojiblancos suffered back-to-back defeats in the previous two matches which included a 3-0 thrashing against Juventus in the UEFA Champions League round-of-16 second-leg, which ended the team's journey in the European competition this season.
Therefore, manager Diego Simeone will have to do something to lift his team up and he will be hoping that a lengthy international break would help the players to start fresh in the match on Saturday.
Both teams have already competed 11 times in the league competition before, where Atletico have a slight advantage with five wins compared to Alaves' three, whereas three matches
Deportivo Alaves and Atletico Madrid will face off on the match day 29 in the Spanish La Liga at the Estadio de Mendizorroza on Saturday.
The clash is a top-of-the table tie as the home side are currently placed on the fifth position, just two points behind fourth-placed Getafe, whereas the visitors are currently placed second on the league table, just two points ahead of third-placed Real Madrid.
Therefore, both teams will be eyeing a positive result as the battle for a top-four finish intensified with the season coming to the final stages.
Alaves are going in the match high on confidence as they've managed to win three and draw three out of last six matches in all competition and manager Abelardo will be optimistic of his team's chances against one of the best team in the country.
On the other hand, Atletico will enter the match low on confidence after Los Rojiblancos suffered back-to-back defeats in the previous two matches which included a 3-0 thrashing against Juventus in the UEFA Champions League round-of-16 second-leg, which ended the team's journey in the European competition this season.
Therefore, manager Diego Simeone will have to do something to lift his team up and he will be hoping that a lengthy international break would help the players to start fresh in the match on Saturday.
Both teams have already competed 11 times in the league competition before, where Atletico have a slight advantage with five wins compared to Alaves' three, whereas three matches ended as draw. However, Atleti are on a run of three consecutive wins against Babazorros El Glorioso.
Players to watch out for:
Jan Oblak (D)
Atletico Madrid's Jan Oblak is being termed by many as one of the very best in the world. The 26-year-old is having an outstanding season between the sticks where he has the most number of cleansheets (15) in the league competition, four more than any other goalkeeper. It is that kind of performance which makes Oblak an integral part of the Atletico's defensive unit and manager Simeone will be hoping that his star man will deliver once again and plays an important part in the team's win on Saturday.
Jony (M)
Deportivo Alaves' Jony is one of the most in-form player from the team in the ongoing season. The 27-year-old is having an outstanding time for the club as he is the second-highest assist provider (9) in the league competition, behind only Barcelona's Lionel Messi (12). Those numbers proof why Jony is such an important player for the team and manager Abelardo will be having high hopes from his star man, this time in the all-important match against Atletico Madrid.
Alvaro Morata (F)
Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata's arrival to the club was a big surprise to many but the Spain international have made a decent impact with three goals and an assist in the last six matches. The 26-year-old's ability in the air makes him a real threat in the final third and Deportivo Alaves will have to find a way to neutralise him if they are to secure a positive result.
Captain pick: Alvaro Morata
Vice-captain pick: Jony
Expected lineups:
Deportivo Alaves:
Fernando Pacheco, Carlos Vigaray, Ximo Navarro, Victor Laguardia, Martin Aguirregabiria, Tomas Pina, Darko Brasanac, Takashi Inui, Jony, Borja Baston, Jonathan Calleri.
Atletico Madrid:
Jan Oblak, Juanfran, Diego Godin, Jose Gimenez, Saul Niguez, Thomas Partey, Angel Correa, Koke, Thomas Lemar, Alvaro Morata, Antoine Griezmann.
