Atletico Madrid vs Girona Prediction: Magic of the Metropolitano to spur on hosts

Arguably the pick of the weekend La Liga fixtures takes place at Metropolitano Stadium on Sunday evening (20:30, Premier Sports 1) as Atletico Madrid host Girona. Both sides secured Champions League football last season but it was Girona that finished third ahead of Atletico, who mustered five fewer points across 38 games.

Read below for my Atletico Madrid vs Girona prediction and all the latest team news as the two teams look to claim their first success of the season following draws in their league openers last weekend.

Team News

Julian Alvarez made his Atletico Madrid debut off the bench at Villarreal and head coach Diego Simeone must now decide whether to hand the Argentine his full debut. Fellow summer signing Robin Le Normand started against the Yellow Submarine and will begin the game again on Sunday, but a substitute outing for Conor Gallagher, who recently joined from Chelsea, looks more likely.

Alexander Sorloth was presented in front of Atleti supporters alongside Alvarez, Le Normand and Gallagher on Wednesday, and the Norwegian looks set to start once more after scoring on his debut last weekend.

Football Odds

Girona lost several of last season's stars during the summer, notably Pichichi Trophy winner Artem Dobvyk (AS Roma), Aleix Garcia (Bayer Leverkusen) and Savinho (Manchester City), but they can be proud of their efforts in their La Liga opener at Real Betis.

Los Albirrojos were a goal down inside six minutes as Marc Bartra opened the scoring for the hosts, but they rallied back to level through substitute Gabriel Misehouy, who scored on his debut within a minute of his introduction. The Dutch midfielder will hope that strike is enough to force his way into the starting XI on Sunday.

Head coach Michel won't be able to call on Viktor Tsygankov or Valery, however, as the duo continue their recoveries from injury.

Atletico Madrid vs Girona Odds

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Atletico won the corresponding fixture 3-1 last season and Sunday's hosts are 8/13, or a 61.9% chance, to beat Girona at the Metropolitano again. The visitors are 4/1 to take all three points, giving them an implied win probability of 20%, while the draw can be backed at 16/5.

Both teams to score is priced at 4/6 and over 2.5 total goals is available at 8/13.

After scoring on his Atletico debut against his former employers, Sorloth is 9/2 favourite to score first on Sunday, with teammate Antoine Griezmann (5/1) just behind him.

Double Chance & Both Teams To Score - Atletico Madrid or Draw & Yes @ 1/1

Atletico and Girona served up a couple of entertaining contests last season. Girona edged a 4-3 thriller at home on January 3 before succumbing to a 3-1 loss in Madrid on April 13.

Girona earned promotion back to La Liga in 2022 and their first game back at the Metropolitano also saw both teams score, with Simeone's side winning 2-1.

BTTS - Yes landed in both of these teams' La Liga openers last week, with Atletico also managing to avoid defeat at Villarreal.

Given their exemplary record at the Metropolitano - only champions Real Madrid (51) collected more points at home than Atletico (49) in 2023/24 - I am expecting Sunday's hosts to claim at least a point, but it's unlikely to be easy, which is why I'm leaning on double chance.

I think goals will continue to flow in this fixture, so adding BTTS - Yes looks like the play to up the odds to EVS.

First Goal Time - 1-10 Minutes @ 3/1

Atletico and Girona both fell foul to an early goal in their La Liga openers - Girona conceded in the sixth minute to Betis, while Atletico were a goal down inside 18 minutes at Villarreal - and both meetings between these sides last season saw Girona make a quick start.

Valery scored inside two minutes at Estadio Municipal de Montilivi and it took Dobvyk just two minutes more to net at the Metropolitano.

With some top attackers on the pitch and the sides not yet up to full speed, the above market may be one to consider in the early weeks of the season.

Given the recent meetings between the sides and last week's opening day antics, 3/1 for a goal before the 10th minute piques my interest.

Offers

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