Ever since their victory over Real Madrid, Diego Simeone's side have struggled, losing in the Champions League and drawing against Celta Vigo over the weekend. As their enigmatic manager continues to serve his touchline ban, Atléti will try to get things back on track against 10th-placed Almeria. Almeria were one of the four teams to hand Los Colchoneros a league defeat last season, and will be looking to do it again.
Almeria vs. Atlético Madrid live stream: How to watch La Liga online, TV schedule and more
The defending champions are struggling this season, but Almeria won’t give them an easy victory.
Denis Doyle
Key Player: The Atlético Defense
It’s easy to blame the departure of Filipe Luis and Thibaut Courtois for Atléti’s recent defensive struggles, but that’s really not fair. We’ve seen Simeone’s defense look like their usual, suffocating selves this season but for some reason the wheels have flown off in the last two matches. Conceding five goals in two goals is highly uncharacteristic to say the least, so a strong performance by the back line would help restore some confidence after an early season road bump.
Key Matchup: Arda Turan vs. Almeria’s Left Back
Sebastián Dubarbier has started every match this season for Almeria at left back, but after earning two yellow cards against Real Sociedad, he’ll be forced to miss Wednesday’s match. Mane is the likely replacement for Dubarbier, but whoever gets the nod will have the unenviable task of trying to slow down Arda Turan as he bombs down the wing. Turan is probably one of the more underrated players in La Liga -- blame Real Madrid and Barcelona for having too much talent -- and he’s difficult for even the best defenders to deal with. Atléti would be smart to try and test Dubarbier’s replacement often and early.
Almeria injuries and suspensions
Out: Sebastián Dubarbier (suspended).
Atlético Madrid injuries and suspensions
In Doubt: Mario Mandzukic (broken nose), Cristian Rodriguez (calf).
Both Mandzukic and Rodriguez remain doubts ahead of Atléti’s match on Wednesday. The Croatian striker returned to training this week after surgery nose, and the only reports about his availability claim he could play. If he does feature, it’ll likely be as a substitute. Almeria’s only missing player is starting left back Sebastián Dubarbier who picked up a red card in their win over Real Sociedad. Mane is expected to start in his place.
Match Date/Time: Wednesday, 8 p.m. local, 2 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio de los Juegos Mediterráneos, Almería, Spain
TV: beIN Sports en Español (U.S.), Sky Sports 5/HD (U.K.), Canal+ Yomvi, Canal+ Liga/HD, GOL T (Spain)
Online: beIN Sports CONNECT (U.S.), Sky Go (U.K.), beIN Sports CONNECT (Canada), Gol Stadium (Spain)
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