Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid: Lineups, stats and preview

Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid match preview

Real Madrid’s 500th game in the European Cup or Champions League is likely to be a tight one if their two previous meetings with Atletico Madrid this season are anything to go by, both finishing 1-1.

The 15-time champions did not increase manager Carlo Ancelotti’s confidence on Saturday, losing 2-1 at Real Betis in the absence of suspended England international Jude Bellingham.

“If we play like that, we’re not going to win on Tuesday – that’s pretty clear,” Ancelotti concluded after Madrid missed the chance to temporarily supplant Barcelona at the top of LaLiga.

“Hopefully, this match will serve as a wake-up call, a lesson. For the first 20 minutes, we did well and for the other 70 minutes, we did poorly.”

⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️ pic.twitter.com/jx3Q21yWvP

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) March 2, 2025

Atleti are out for revenge after losing the 2014 and 2016 finals to Madrid as part of an overall record of five defeats and three wins in 10 encounters between the sides in Europe.

Diego Simeone’s team are two points above Madrid domestically and one behind Barca after Julian Alvarez’s 66th-minute goal gave them a 1-0 home win over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.

Madrid finished three points behind their next opponents at the end of the league phase, meaning they had to win a play-off against Manchester City to reach this stage while Atleti went through automatically.

Since falling behind in Paris on Matchday 4, Atleti have recorded five consecutive Champions League wins and scored 17 goals while conceding four.

❝For the city of Madrid it is spectacular that the two teams are facing each other. Tomorrow we have a great opportunity❞.

— Simeone 🎙️ pic.twitter.com/Vu1J3Onsdj

— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) March 3, 2025

Madrid vs Atletico Madrid team news

Atleti have no new injuries, with defender Cesar Azpilicueta out and midfielder Koke absent because of a thigh injury.

Jose Maria Gimenez could replace Robin Le Normand, according to Mundo Deportivo, who say Simeone is yet to decide who will start on the left wing and is considering bringing in Conor Gallagher.

Bellingham scored Madrid’s added-time winner in their play-off first leg at City but is suspended, while Ancelotti still has several players sidelined.

Defenders Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao are both absent with knee injuries, and a tendon issue means Dani Ceballos is not an option in midfield, where Jesus Vallejo will not feature because of a hamstring problem. Federico Valverde is a doubt.

👟⚽️ pic.twitter.com/MeSaq7BwSK

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) March 2, 2025

Madrid vs Atleti expected line-ups

Real Madrid: Courtois, Valverde, Rudiger, Asencio, Mendy, Modric, Tchouameni, Camavinga, Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius Junior

Atletico Madrid: Oblak, Llorente, Gimenez, Lenglet, Galan, Simeone, Barrios, De Paul, Lino, Griezmann, Alvarez

How to watch Real Madrid vs Atleti: Live stream, TV channel

In the UK, Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid is on TNT Sports 1. Kick-off is at 8pm GMT and coverage will follow Club Brugge vs Aston Villa on the channel, which starts at 5.45pm.

Online streaming is available on a vast range of devices via the discovery+ app.

🌱⚽️🔁🛠️ pic.twitter.com/vq8dlmBkqv

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) March 2, 2025

Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid stats

❝The team is very excited and looking forward to playing this type of game❞.

— De Paul 🎙️ pic.twitter.com/ZBXdH1iMjg

— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) March 3, 2025

Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid prediction

The omens are not promising for Atleti, who have lost all of their last five knockout-stage matches against Madrid and each of their last three against all opponents.

Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior each have seven goals in the competition, and stats experts Opta give their team almost a 50% chance of winning here.

Atleti, however, have plenty of potency: Antoine Griezmann and Alvarez have six goals each, with the Argentina forward giving them the lead at Madrid on February 8 before Mbappe earned the hosts a point.

They have lost two fewer games than anyone else in LaLiga and been beaten once in all competitions since November – a run they can continue with a 1-1 draw to set up an even less predictable second leg on March 12.