Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid head to head: History between the two LaLiga giants

The LaLiga title race is heading down to the wire this season, with only two points separating table toppers Atletico Madrid and contenders FC Barcelona. The two teams will square off at the Camp Nou on Saturday, with Real Madrid, who are level on points with Barcelona, closely watching the action unfold. With the clash being a make or break in their hopes of clinching the title, here's a look at the Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid head to head record, team news and our Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid prediction for the same. 

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid head to head record 

Barcelona have a massive advantage over their title rivals Atletico Madrid and their record over the Rojiblancos speaks for itself. The Blaugrana have managed to win 27 of their 53 meetings against the Rojiblancos, with the Madrid side only clinching 12 wins over their opponents. However, one of those victories came earlier in the season, when Diego Simone's men claimed a 1-0 win with Yannick Carrasco scoring the only goal of the game. Barcelona captain Lionel Messi has featured in 42 games across all competitions against Atletico Madrid and has an impeccable record, scoring 32 goals and assisting further nine to his teammates. Atletico Madrid will hope to keep the six-time Ballon d'Or winner quiet and repeat their heroics from the 2013/14 season, where they won the title after claiming a draw on the final day of the season. 

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid history 

Barcelona are one of the most successful clubs in the history of the sport and were amongst the three founding members of LaLiga. Since their foundation in 1899, the club has won a whopping 26 LaLiga titles, only behind arch-rivals Real Madrid. They have won a record number of domestic trophies, 74, along with five Champions League titles, five Super Cups, four UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and three FIFA Club World Cups. Their total of 91 titles has them tied with Real Madrid for most titles won by a Spanish side. 

Atletico Madrid meanwhile were founded in 1903 and are Spain's third most successful club following Real Madrid and Barcelona. Atlético have won La Liga on 10 occasions, including a league and cup double in 1996; the Copa del Rey on 10 occasions; two Supercopas de España, one Copa Presidente FEF and one Copa Eva Duarte. In Europe, the Rojiblancos won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1962, the Europa League in 2010, 2012 and 2018, and won the UEFA Super Cup in 2010, 2012 and 2018 as well as the 1974 Intercontinental Cup. They have reached the Champions League final thrice, only to be beaten by Real Madrid on two occasions. Their overall trophy count stands at 33. 

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid team news 

Barcelona did not pick up any fresh injury problems in their win over Valencia, meaning the trio of  Martin Braithwaite, Philippe Coutinho and Ansu Fati and are the only players unavailable. Manager Ronald Koeman has used a number of systems this season, and with options available, the Dutchman could tweak his side a bit, with the likes of Sergi Roberto and Ronald Araujo making a claim. As for Atletico Madrid, Renan Lodi is ruled out, while Jose Gimenez is a doubt for the fixture. Thomas Lemar could return to the XI, while Suarez will partner with Agel Correa in the attack against his former side. 

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid team news: Predicted XIs

• Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Araujo, Pique, Lenglet; Dest, De Jong, Busquets, Pedri, Alba; Messi, Griezmann
• Atletico Madrid: Oblak; Savic, Gimenez, Hermoso; Trippier, Llorente, Koke, Lemar, Carrasco; Suarez, Correa

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid live stream

There will be no live telecast of the game in India. However, the Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid live stream will be available on the official LaLiga page on Facebook Watch. Live scores and updates can be accessed on the Twitter handles of both teams. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:45 PM IST on Saturday at Camp Nou. 

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid prediction 

• We predict that Barcelona will clinch three points at home over Atletico Madrid with a hard-fought 2-1 win on Saturday. 

(Image Courtesy: Barcelona Twitter)