Hello and welcome to the Madrid derby as Atletico face Real Madrid at the Estadio Metropolitano with both sides yet to taste to defeat in the league to date this season.
Traditionally, Real Madrid hold the upper hand in derby games with Los Blancos running out winners in 91 of the 174 LaLiga meetings with Atleti bagging 41 victories and 42 games ending in a draw.
However, in the past three meetings, Atleti won the corresponding fixture last year 3-1 with the sides drawing at the Bernabeu 1-1. The Colchoneros also ousted Madrid from the 23-24 Copa del Rey with a 4-2 (AET) win and at present are the last side to have beaten Real Madrid in LaLiga with Ancelotti's men 39 games unbeaten in the league.
70,000 fans will pack into the ground in the San Blas area of Madrid tonight with a massive red and white mosaic set to greet the sides as they emerge onto the pitch at 3pm (ET).
Both sides are back in European action next midweek with Real Madrid travelling to face Lille in northern France with Atleti making the short trip to Lisbon to face Portuguese giants Benfica in the Champions League.
Neither side have lost in the 24-25 LaLiga season to date and will see a win as a massive opportunity to close ground on Barça at the top of the table with the Catalan side finally falling to their first league defeat of the season in Pamplona (4-2). Madrid (in second place) have amassed 17 points to the 15 of Simeone's side.
English Aroma to the Madrid Derby
Tonight will be the first time the Madrid derby features two English players for either side with Jude Bellingham expected to start for Carlo Ancelotti and it's widely expected that former Chelsea star Conor Gallagher will be in Cholo Simeone's starting XI for the home side.
Atletico Madrid Team News
As we await the Atletico Madrid team sheet we can assume that Gallagher will be in the starting XI with the English player's jersey featuring in the countdown Twitter (X) post.
Sørloth and Alvarez to spearhead Atleti attack with Griezmann and Gallagher marshalling the centre of the park and the side captained by keeper Jan Oblak.
Real Madrid Team News
Vini Jr and Rodrygo will spearhead the Real Madrid attack tonight with Kylian Mbappe sidelined with a muscular problem and the French striker expected to miss at least three weeks.
Real Madrid Possible Starting XI Against Atlético Madrid in LaLiga
Atletico Madrid: Substitutes
Atlético Madrid: Musso, Gomis, Witsel, Lenglet, Galán, Koke, Serrano, Riquelme, Samu Lino, Lemar, Giuliano Simeone & Correa.
Real Madrid: Substitutes
Real Madrid: Lunin, Fran González, Lucas Vázquez, Vallejo, Jacobo Ramón, Fran García, Camavinga, Arda Güler & Endrick.
Largest Derby Scoreline
Atleti fans would have to go back to the 1947-48 season for the largest win over their arch enemy with a 5-0 scoreline. Real Madrid have handed out two 5-0 drubbings to Atleti with the first coming in the 1958-59 season and the other as part of the 83-84 campaign.
Warm Welcome for Atleti Team Bus
Fans packed the streets beside the Estadio Metropolitano as the Atletico Madrid team bus made its way to the ground with plenty of colour and pyrotechnics to greet the team with countdown to the derby well under way.
Simeone Reinforces the Need to 'Work as a Team'
Speaking to DAZN pre-game, Atletico's head coach Diego pablo Simeone reinforced the importance of his team working as a collective, starting with strikers Sorloth and Alvarez and expressed the need for them to work also in a defensive capacity.
Madrid Clubs Learn CWC Venues
Both Madrid giants will represent LaLiga at next summer's inaugural expanded FIFA Club World Cup with 32 teams competing in the tournament that will be staged in the United States.
Last night at an event in NYC, FIFA confirmed the host cities that would be staging matches for the 2025 event.
Vini Jr ‘Masked Hate Campaign’ Sees LaLiga Take Strict Action
300 Madrid Fans Expected
Despite being allocated 400 match tickets for the derby, only 300 Madridistas will brave the hostile environment that is the Estadio Metropolitano on derby day. The travelling supporters will be housed in the second tier of the North Stand at the stadium.
How Atlético Madrid Plan to Stop Real Madrid: Line-up and Tactics
Jude Bellingham Looking to Get Off the Mark
The former BVB player has yet to find the target this season having bagged 23 goals. Mbappé's injury sees the Englishman back into a more attacking role ahead of the derby tonight at the Metropolitano.
Whistles as Madrid Take to the Pitch
Real Madrid are the first side out for their pre-game warm up routine with a loud barrage of whistles to greet Carlo Ancelotti's men as they take to the pitch.
The Stadium Awaits
The stadium is engulfed in a red, white and blue sea with the mosaic design and the banner in the south stand reads ' Until my final days'.
AC/DC's Thunderstruck Starts
AC/DC's Thunderstruckhas just started on the PA system as the house lights are dimmed ... it's game time at the Estadio Civitas Metropolitano !
Warm-ups Are Over
A packed house awaits with 67,000 Colchoneros and just 300 hardy travelling Madridstas.
Atleti warming up too with a slightly different reaction from the home fans to the arrival of their players.
Who is Mateo Busquets Ferrer, the Referee for Atlético Madrid - Real Madrid Today?
The Teams Are on the Pitch
Modric and Oblak the captains for tonight's clash pose for the pregame protocol snap with referee Mateo Busquets Ferrer.
Real Madrid Start the Game
Dangerous Ball In from Carvajal
All the early play in Atletico's half.
Vini on the ball with the Brazilian greeted with a series of whistles from the home fans.
Atleti have been on the back foot for the opening five minutes with all the initative coming from the men in white.
Griezmann looks for Sorloth but too much on the pass and Sorloth was unable to latch on the pass.
Better from the home side now.
Atletico with a period of sustained possession now as De Paul looks to centre but fires too close to Courtois.
The angle was very acute to be fair to the striker.
First chance of the night falls to Julian Alvarez and Courtois stands tall to save from the Argentine.
Possession After 10'
Atleti 23-77 Real Madrid (%)
Vini Picks Up the Ball
Real Madrid win a corner as Modric skips away and Llorente has to intervene.
Griezmann 500
Another corner for the visitors.
Great hit from Valverde and the effort forces a superb stop from Jan Oblak.
After a solid spell form Atleti, Madrid getting back into the action now.
Twenty minutes gone and the game is being dominated by both sided in waves.
Possession After 20'
Atleti 46-54 Real Madrid (%)
Just the one clear chance per side. Alvarez for Atleti and Valverde for the visitors.
Courtois also getting pelters from the home fans ... Still a sore point for Atleti supporters the way he moved to Real Madrid a few years back following his Atleti-Chelsea and Madrid trajectory.
Very ambitious from the Madrid No. 8.
Llorente clips Vini Jr. and it's a dangerous free for Madrid as Valverde stands over the ball but the Uruguayan drives the ball wide.
We've seen little or nothing from Sorloth this evening with the former Villarreal man putting in plenty of running but yet to get on the ball.
Madrid enjoying the bulk of possession in the past few minutes.
We pass the half an hour mark and the game is still a tight and tense affair.
Real Madrid Ahead on 'Points'
One shot on target a piece and Madrid edging things on possession 48-52 (%).
Jude Bellingham gets another shot off for Madrid but easy for Oblak as the Atleti captain is quick to react.
Nervy times as Oblak (yes Oblak) dribbles past Vinicius in his own 6 yard box !
Two half chances per side but no real clear cut chances so far.
Approaching the half time whistle and the game is still being played with the tension and nervous energy that one would expect from a big city derby match.
First booking of the night.
Modric carded as he stamps a rival player.
Madrid also applying a very high press denying Atleti the opportunity to move the ball around with the time they would wish.
Both teams cancelling one another out so far tonight.
Rodrigo de Paul really has been Atletico's weak link tonight with the Argentine culpable now on a number of occasions of giving the ball away cheaply and putting his side under pressure.
First Corner of the Night for Atleti
Good work from Sorloth.
Griezmann to take. Sorloth heads into Courtois' arms.
The whistle sounds and its stalemate so far in the Madrid derby.
Tension ... the Word that Underpins the Madrid Derby so Far
Both teams playing with all the pressure a game of this nature throws up.
Chances have been few and far between with Valverde and Bellingham testing Oblak and Julian Alvarez going close for the home side in a game with clear scoring chances very much at a premium.
Atleti fans calling for Koke at the interval but the game does need someone to offer 'something different'.
0-0 at the Break
All Atleti subs on the pitch warming up at the break and zero Madrid players carrying out drills.
Koke seems to be the one player Atleti fans feel could be a game changer.
Koke is on and it's Molina who makes way.
Atleti set to start the second half.
No changes for Real Madrid at the interval.
How to Watch the Game
Coverage begins on ITV4 at 7:30 p.m. BST ahead of the 8 p.m. BST kickoff. That also means you'll be able to stream the game online via the network's online ITVX service.
As the match is being broadcast on ITV4, that means you'll also have the option of watching the game online for free via the network's on-demand streaming service, ITVX (formerly ITV Hub). The service has an updated app that's available for Android and Apple mobile devices, as well as a vast array of smart TVs.
La Liga broadcast rights in the UK are also with Premier Sports, which will be showing a minimum of five live matches per week from Spain's top league on its Premier Sports 1 and 2 channels, as well as its dedicated La Liga platform. This match will be shown on Premier Sports 1 as well as LaLigaTV.
A subscription to just Premier Sports' dedicated La Liga channel costs £8 a month. You can also get the channel via a full subscription to Premier Sports, giving you access to all of the networks' channels, which have the UK broadcast rights to Scottish Premiership matches, BKT United Rugby Championship and Investec Champions Cup rugby, plus NHL and NASCAR.
A full Premier Sports subscription costs £10 per month for Sky and Virgin TV customers. You can also get Premier Sports through Amazon Prime Video as an add-on for £15 a month.
This match is available to stream in the US via ESPN Plus, which has live English and Spanish-language broadcast rights for La Liga in the States.
ESPN's standalone streaming service costs $11 a month or $110 for an annual subscription. Read our ESPN Plus review.
TSN is the rights holder for live coverage of La Liga matches in the region, with select fixtures being shown on its linear channels, and a wider selection of games being shown on its TSN Plus streaming platform. This match is set to be shown on TSN Plus.
TSN Plus is a direct-streaming service that costs CA$8 a month and also offers coverage of PGA Tour Live golf, NFL games, F1, NASCAR and the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments.
If you find yourself unable to view La Liga matches locally, you may need a different way to watch the games -- that's where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It's normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you'll get three months free and save 49%. That's the equivalent of $6.67 a month with code SPECIALDEAL, which should be automatically applied.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Footy fans Down Under can once again watch La Liga fixtures live on BeIn Sports, which holds the live broadcast rights in Australia for Spanish top-flight matches. This match is set to be shown on BeIn Sports 3.
BeIn Sports is available in Australia for AU$15 a month or a yearly commitment of AU$130.
What to Watch For
The Madrid Derby is a game of passion, intensity, and tactics. Both teams are known for their defensive solidity, so expect a tight, hard-fought contest. Here are some key players to watch:
- Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid): The young Englishman is a star in the making and will be looking to make a statement in this derby. Bellingham is a powerful midfielder with an eye for goal and a knack for creating chances. He is capable of dictating the tempo of the game and could be the difference-maker for Real Madrid.
- Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid): The former Chelsea midfielder has seamlessly transitioned to Spanish football and has quickly become an important part of Simeone's team. Gallagher brings energy and tenacity to midfield and is a threat in both attack and defense. His ability to break up play and start counter-attacks will be vital for Atletico's success in this match.
- Antoine Griezmann (Atlético Madrid): The French forward is one of the most creative and unpredictable players in the world. Griezmann is a master of movement and can unlock defenses with a clever pass or a moment of magic. His ability to link up with the strikers and create chances will be key for Atlético's offensive threat.
- Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid): The Brazilian winger is a nightmare for defenders with his speed, dribbling skills, and flair. Vinicius can beat his man with ease and create dangerous chances for his teammates. He will be looking to exploit any weaknesses in the Atletico defense and deliver a game-changing performance.
Beyond the Pitch
The Madrid Derby is more than just a football match; it's a cultural event. The rivalry between these two clubs runs deep, and the atmosphere at the Estadio Metropolitano will be electric. Both sets of fans will be passionate and vocal, creating a unique and intense atmosphere that is sure to add to the spectacle of the match.
The stakes are high in this clash, and both teams will be desperate for victory. No matter who wins, the Madrid Derby is always a thrilling and unforgettable event.
