Di final matchday of La Liga don come, and third place dey on di line for Villarreal and Atletico Madrid. Di two teams go lock horns for Estadio La Cerámica on Sunday night, with both sides level on 69 points. Atletico only need draw to leapfrog Villarreal into third place because of head-to-head advantage, as dem beat Villarreal 2-0 earlier for di season.
Villarreal don struggle for di last three games, picking only one point from matches against Mallorca, Sevilla, and Rayo Vallecano. Dis na big contrast to dia 5-1 win over Levante for di start of May. But dem still get chance to finish third if dem beat Atletico. Di match also be final game for Villarreal manager Marcelino, wey dey leave di club after three years, leading dem to back-to-back Champions League qualifications.
Atletico Madrid, under Diego Simeone, get 21 wins, six draws, and 10 defeats from 37 matches. Dem just lose to Arsenal for Champions League semi-finals and also lose Copa del Rey final to Real Sociedad. But dem don win dia last two games, including 1-0 victory over Girona, and dem dey look to end campaign with three straight wins.
For team news, Villarreal go miss Pau Cabanes and Juan Foyth through injury, but Renato Veiga go return from suspension. Luiz Junior, Georges Mikautadze, Gerard Moreno, Dani Parejo, and Nicolas Pepe go likely start. Ayoze Perez go dey on bench due to fitness issues.
Atletico get several injury problems: Rodrigo Mendoza, Nahuel Molina, and Johnny Cardoso out; Jose Gimenez, Julian Alvarez, Nico Gonzalez, and Pablo Barrios dey doubtful. Marcos Llorente go return from suspension, but Robin Le Normand go serve one-game ban. Antoine Griezmann go play im last game for Atletico before moving to MLS side Orlando City. Di predicted lineup include Juan Musso for goal; Marcos Llorente, Marc Pubill, Dávid Hancko, Matteo Ruggeri for defence; Koke, Obed Vargas, Álex Baena for midfield; and Giuliano Simeone, Griezmann, Ademola Lookman for attack.
Di history between di two sides at La Cerámica favour Atletico, as dem no don lose away to Villarreal since 2018. Di fixture don happen twice before on final day: a 1-0 win for Atletico in 2012 and a 2-2 draw in 2023. Dis time, di stakes high as third place go mean automatic Champions League group stage spot.
Do you have a news tip for NNN? Please email us at editor @ nnn.ng
