Celta Vigo vs Atl. Madrid prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2023-02-11 15:15.
Celta Vigo manager Carlos Carvalhal gleefully boasted in the tunnel at Sevilleâs Benito VillamarĂn Stadium that his side âcame here to winâ after they conquered Real Betis 4-3 last weekend in what was just their second win of the La Liga (LL) season as a pre-match outsider (W2, D2, L5), and first time battling back from a deficit to claim all three points. His visible confidence continues to grow with their points tally, which has had a very handy boost courtesy of their first back-to-back LL wins since the first month of the season.
Their two LL wins over Betis, as well as a home victory against Athletic Bilbao (1-0) this LL season, shows Celta can stand their ground against the big fish, and theyâll have to continue doing so with assignments against AtlĂ©tico Madrid and Real Sociedad likely to threaten the four-point buffer from the relegation zone that they began this round with.
Hours following news that his contract negotiations stalled, an âat peaceâ Diego Simeone appeared ready to accept his decade-plus tenure could soon be coming to an end after a 1-1 draw at home to Getafe confirmed that exiting all other competitions for 2022/23 was not the solution to their faltering LL campaign. Simeone (and the club hierarchy) ought to be reminded that his side secured top-four finishes in both 2021/22 and 2019/20 despite having 35 or fewer points at this stage, so a top-four finish remains well within their sights.
AtlĂ©tico cannot take bottom-half opposition for granted though after suffering LL defeats away to CĂĄdiz (3-2) and Mallorca (1-0) prior to the World Cup. That said, their overall LL form since that break – losing only to runaway league leaders Barcelona (W3, D2, L1) – gives hope that such failures could be behind them.
Players to watch: Gabri Veiga earned the high praises of his manager last weekend after scoring his fifth and sixth league goals of the season, with Carvalhal saying he has âfound only one or two playersâ like Veiga in his squads. Another special talent in excellent form is AtlĂ©ticoâs Ăngel Correa, who has now opened the scoring in five games across all 2022/23 competitions after his recent opener against Getafe.
Hot stat: All but two of the last 16 LL games involving either club were either drawn or decided by a one-goal margin – a long way from AtlĂ©tico's 4-1 win in the reverse H2H.