Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid - Match Preview

So the Madrid derby comes at a major point in the season for both teams.

By Luke Stevenson /

So the Madrid derby comes at a major point in the season for both teams. Atletico need to win to keep up pressure on the European places, whilst Real need to win to avoid being labelled as the Cardiff City of La Liga (one of the more fashionable titles going around) as they're doing the remarkable job of throwing away a 10 point lead over Barcelona, which is now down to 1 point. It's now officially squeaky bum time for Jose Mourinho's side (that's not a metaphor I've ever really understood, but it does create the rather playful idea of the highly paid Galacticos of Madrid squeaking their assess across the floor like a dog with an itchy behind, hence why I'm going to keep using it) who are facing a difficult run of games with the Champions League Semi-Finals against Bayern Munich bookending a potential title decider against Barcelona. This is the epitome of must win as they need to enter their match against Barcelona with a 4 point cushion as, let's face it, they're not going to beat Barcelona. No matter how much I wish them so. Real Madrid aren't the only team playing for something, Atletico Madrid haven't beaten their city rivals in a massive 13 years which, according to Opta, is their longest spell without beating another team in their history. That's 20 league matches, and 22 overall. The fact that a win here would be akin to throwing a blood hungry Puma into a pit of tied down pigeons is enough to motivate any team; especially their local rivals who are also trying to keep the pressure on the European places, as a win here would keep the eyes on 4th place, of which they are 7 points adrift. Previous Form:Atletico Madrid: Have won their last 3 matches at home. Have kept 4 clean sheets in the last 6 games. Real Madrid: Their 0-0 draw against Valencia was the first time Real Madrid have failed to score in 42 games. Have only dropped points in 6 games this season. 3 of which were in the last 5 matches. Team News:Atletico Madrid: Antonio Lopez, Silvio Pereira are out due to injury and Eduardo Salvio, Miranda and Mario Suarez will all miss through suspension. Atletico's main strike threat, Falcao, is also a doubt to play the entire match after only managing 25 minutes against Levante. Real Madrid: Sergio Ramos is back from suspension, with Albiol likely to miss out. Carvalho is still injured. Match Prediction:Atletico Madrid 0- 2 Real Madrid If Real get an early goal it should settle any nerves and will springboard them into an easy, confidence building victory. However the longer the game remains 0-0 the more chance Atletico have of capitalising on Real desperation. All in all it should be quite a match. What do you think the outcome of this match will be?