Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid Odds & Prediction – La Liga Round 35

• Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid meet in La Liga on Saturday, May 8, KO 11:15 am EST
• Atleti has a slender two-point lead at the top of La Liga ahead of  Barca and Real Madrid
• We preview the game, look at the odds, and offer a best bet below

First plays third in La Liga this weekend, with Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid. It is a game that could go some way to decide the destiny of this season’s title and it all kicks off in Catalonia on Saturday, May 8 at 11:15 am EST. For the first time in a decade, the title race includes a fourth contender – Sevilla – but their defeat by Athletic Bilbao, on Monday night, opened up the gap between them and Atleti to six points with four to play.

We preview this Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid La Liga Matchday 35 game below, take a look at the odds and offer our prediction.

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid Odds

All odds as of May 7

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High Stakes at the Camp Nou

The stakes could not be higher when Barcelona host league-leaders Atletico Madrid at the Camp Nou on Saturday. With just two points separating these two with four games of the season remaining, neither can afford to drop points. As a further twist, second-placed Real Madrid plays fourth-placed Sevilla on Sunday, so any dropped points at this stage by any of the four may well prove fatal to their title hopes.

VAMOOOOS!!!!! ➕3️⃣🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/5ojNKVHQFn

— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) May 1, 2021

Under the leadership of Diego Simeone, Atleti has consistently punched above their weight but they have taken it to the next level this season and have led La Liga, ahead of Barca and their city neighbors, for large chunks of the campaign. Their narrow 1-0 win over Elche last weekend was achieved under huge pressure and bodes well for the remaining four matches.

MATCH REPORT | Another come-from-behind win! #ValenciaBarçahttps://t.co/2xlhQmxoxq

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) May 3, 2021

Barca Miss Chance to Take Control

While Atletico was beating Elche, Barcelona was enjoying a comeback win over Valencia to keep the pressure on, but just three days earlier, Ronald Koeman’s men had suffered a shock 2-1 home defeat to Granada; a loss in a game that would have put them in pole position for the run-in and which would have put the destiny of the La Liga title in their own hands.

Always wanting more.

🔴⚪ #AúpaAtleti | @LuisSuarez9 pic.twitter.com/Wci1E8ah24

— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) May 7, 2021

On a more positive note for Barca, they do have a very good record against Atleti, having won 27 of the 53 games the two sides have played. By contrast, the Madrid side has won just 12 times, with the other 14 games being drawn. The reverse fixture in Madrid, back in November, was one of the 12 Atleti wins, with Yannick Carrasco scoring the only goal of the game.

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid Head-to-Head Stats

Suarez Back for Atleti

In terms of team news, Barca full-back Sergino Dest is a doubt after wrestling with a couple of knocks over the last few games and is expected to be replaced by Sergi Roberto. Other absentees for Barca are Philippe Coutinho and Ansu Fati, and it is also looking likely that this game will come too soon for Martin Braithwaite. For Atletico, the picture is brighter, with a fully-fit squad for Simeone to pick from, including a fully recovered Luis Suarez.

For Barcelona, the key, as ever, will be the effectiveness, or otherwise, of Lionel Messi. If the Argentinian is able to throw off the close attentions of Simeone’s no-nonsense defenders and link up with Antoine Griezmann – as he did so successfully in the comeback win over Valencia – then a Barca win could be on the cards. If, however, Atleti can restrict Messi’s effectiveness, that will tilt the balance in their favor.

🐐⛽️ Refueling. pic.twitter.com/6lGXhp8ke7

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) May 7, 2021

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid Best Bets

With so much at stake, the pressure gauge will be on 11 as these two Super League hopefuls go head-to-head in one of the sport’s greatest arenas, and in addition to the Messi factor, it also comes down to who can best manage the occasion.

Barca has the edge when it comes to the handling of these big games and, especially on home soil, may just have enough left in the tank to see this through. I expect it to be very tight though and while the draw is tempting, especially given the incredibly high stakes, I’m going for a Barca win by the smallest of margins.

Pick: Barcelona to win 1-0 (+650) 

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