Atletico Madrid host Villarreal on Sunday afternoon and will be aiming to secure a second successive victory at the start of the new La Liga season.
Diego Simeone's Atleti kicked off the new campaign with a 2-0 victory over newly promoted Malaga on Wednesday and are back in action four days later.
Villarreal, meanwhile, travelled to Racing Santander who also came up from the second tier, and had to fight back after going two down after 34 minutes to earn a point last weekend.
Atletico Madrid v Villarreal Tips Summary
Best Bet - Atletico Madrid to win @ 5/6
Alternative Bet - Both teams to score @ 8/13
Bet Builder - Ademola Lookman anytime goalscorer, Alex Baena 2+ shots on target & Over 7.5 corners @ 12/1
Atletico Madrid v Villarreal Prediction
Best Bet: Atletico Madrid to win @ 5/6
Atletico were pipped to third place by Villarreal last season after losing 5-1 to the Yellow Submarine on the final day of the La Liga campaign.
Los Rojiblancos have been handed an early opportunity to exact revenge and will look to make home advantage count when the sides go into battle on Sunday.
Atleti are off the mark after their opening victory over Malaga and will take confidence from the fact Villarreal conceded two first-half goals at Santander on Sunday.
With neither Real Madrid nor Barcelona in action during the first week of the campaign, Simeone's side can set their stall out and six points from six would set a marker immediately.
Los Colchoneros lost 11 games last season and will know that being hard to beat at the Metropolitano will be key to standing any chance of mounting a title challenge this time around.
Villarreal will be keen to bounce back after dropping points against Santander, but a trip to the capital is far from ideal in that situation and Inigo Perez's side will likely have to wait to pick up their first win.
Alternative Bet: Both teams to score @ 8/13
The hosts will have enjoyed keeping a clean sheet in the first game of the season against Malaga and will be determined to add a second on Sunday.
The Red Whites will be hard to break down, but, after scoring five during their last meeting, Villarreal will know they are capable of hurting Atleti.
While May's rout was at home, the Yellow Submarine will look to hit Simeone's men on the counter-attack.
Atletico conceded against Manchester United, Manchester City and Marseille during pre-season and it could prove that Villarreal possess the efficiency up top to breach the home backline.
Atleti have drawn a blank at home just once since the first week of February and should create enough opportunities to get on the scoresheet on Sunday.
The visitors will be a threat though and, while Simeone's side can win, backing both teams to score may prove to be a smart bet.
Atletico Madrid v Villarreal Bet Builder Tip
Ademola Lookman anytime goalscorer
Alex Baena 2+ shots on target
Over 7.5 corners
Pays 12/1
Ademola Lookman scored nine goals in 24 games for Atleti during the second half of last season and led the line in the win over Malaga.
Gearing up for a full campaign in the Spanish capital, the Nigeria international will be determined to get off the mark swiftly and should find chances come his way when he is deployed as a striker.
One man who did get on the scoresheet on Wednesday was Alex Baena and the forward will be eager to get the better of his former club.
Having helped Spain lift the World Cup this summer, Baena has started the season brightly and will have the confidence to take aim when shooting opportunities present themselves.
As for corners, Villarreal recorded 10 against Santander last week. While a repeat of that tally is unlikely on Sunday, Atleti's eagerness to defend should lead to a number of set-pieces.
Simeone's side took six corners in the win over Malaga and so looking at the figures and the fact that both sides possess top attacking talent, backing over 7.5 corners looks like a wise pick.
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Key Match Stats
Atletico Madrid have lost just once at home to Villarreal in La Liga since April 2017
Villarreal finished three points ahead of Atletico last season thanks to a 5-1 final-day victory over Atleti
Atleti had the joint-fourth best defence last season, conceding 44 goals in 38 games
The Yellow Submarine hit four more corners than any other team during the opening week of the season
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
