Soccer Spain LaLiga Prediction

Atl. Madrid vs Real Sociedad - Match Preview

⚽ 28 May 2023 - 17:00 GMT +0

Perhaps appreciative of how much the result meant to his opponents and their fans, Atlético Madrid boss Diego Simeone did not appear too disheartened by giving up a three-goal lead away to relegation contenders Espanyol (D 3-3) during the week. Despite losing second place to Real Madrid, Simeone described the result as “fair” and “a great match for the fans”.

In their final home game of this La Liga (LL) season, Atlético supporters will be expecting their team to step up and justify their position by defeating a current top-five club for the first time this season. Atlético have failed to do so in six attempts so far (D2, L4), scoring no more than one goal on each occasion, and are fortunate their Champions League participation won’t hinge on their remaining fixtures against top-five rivals Real Sociedad and Villarreal.

After a 1-0 triumph at home to Almería, another win here for Sociedad would guarantee they join Atlético in Europe’s premier club competition next season, but doing so is going to require them to end Atlético’s eight-game LL winning streak at home. Having conquered Barcelona in their previous LL away outing (2-1) as part of a seven-game unbeaten run across all venues (W5, D2), they should feel capable of achieving anything.

Sociedad conceded before the half-time break in just one of those seven games (the 2-2 draw against Girona) which could go towards thwarting some of the fast starts Atlético have recently enjoyed. But with Sociedad the only club to have registered more opening goals inside the first 30 minutes (17) than their opponents (15) this LL season, the first half-hour could be an entertaining spectacle!

📋 Key battle: Neither of them may be first on the scoresheet, but Atlético’s Yannick Carrasco and Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo have every chance of making a later impact. Carrasco scored beyond the 40th minute in four of his last six LL appearances, whilst Kubo did so in three of his most recent five.

⚡ Hot stat: Just one of Atlético’s LL games against top-five clubs this season produced more than 2.5 total goals, as did just two of Sociedad’s LL fixtures against teams in the top six.