Osasuna vs Atlético Madrid Preview: How to Watch on TV, Live Stream, Kick Off Time & Team News
Could next season's Champions League be the first without Atlético Madrid in it since 2012/13? It's certainly looking that way at the moment.
A disjointed draw against Athletic Bilbao at the weekend not only pointed towards the same old issues up top, but suggested that Jan Oblak might be covering up a few cracks in Atléti's once-formidable defence too.
Their next opponent? La Liga's resident party poopers Osasuna, a gritty, newly-promoted side who have stolen points off six of the league's top eight sides this season.
Osasuna's Europa League dreams might seem a little far-fetched at the moment, but after holding Real Sociedad to a draw at the weekend they'll be looking to see if they can put the cat among the Champions League chasing pigeons once more.
Where to Watch
When is Kick Off?: Wednesday 17 June
What Time is Kick Off?: 21:00 (BST)
Where is it Played?: El Sadar Stadium
TV Channel/Live Stream: LaLigaTV
Referee: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea
Team News
Osasuna have a few injury concerns going into Wednesday's clash, with star forward Chimy Ávila having been absent since January after a cruciate ligament injury, while Rober Ibáñez and Kike Barja will likely miss out with muscular injuries. Rubén García is closer to a return to full training after a muscle injury of his own but will not be ready for the match.
Atlético, meanwhile, will be handed a huge boost on Wednesday with João Felix returning from suspension, while Felipe may be ok to play after a thigh complaint - amazingly, after over 300 professional matches this was the first injury of the 31-year-old Felipe's entire career.
After undergoing keyhole surgery for a long-term knee issue in April, Croatian full-back Sime Vrsaljko will not take part, while it remains to be seen if Vitolo will travel after medical tests were done on the knock which kept him out of the Bilbao match.
Predicted Lineups
Osasuna: Martinez; Vidal, Aridane, Garcia, Estupinan; Torres, Oier, Brasanac, Perez; Lopez, Cardona.
Atlético Madrid: Oblak; Trippier, Savic, Gimenez, Lodi; Correa, Thomas, Koke, Saul; Costa, Felix.
Head-to-Head Record
Atlético Madrid have come out on top in the majority of encounters between the two sides, but only by a whisker, with Osasuna three wins behind them in the all-time stakes.
Recent meetings have not been overly kind to Osasuna, who have lost their last three games against Los Colchoneros, conceding eight goals in the process.
However, Osasuna will look back fondly on 2013, when the famous Simeone side which would go on to win the title and reach the Champions League final that season were no match for Los Rojillos, who thumped Atleti 3-0.
'Recent' Form
With two wins, two losses and a draw in their last five games, Osasuna's form is about as mixed as you can get going into the final stretch of the final league campaign
They're 12 points off Sociedad in fourth place, so Champions League is probably a bit of a stretch, but in plenty of their recent games they have come agonisingly close to boosting their points tally, conceding a last-minute goal away at Sevilla and almost clinching a winner through José Manuel Arnáiz against Sociedad.
Most people remember what Atlético were doing directly before football's hiatus - Liverpool fans will still have flashbacks involving Marcos Llorente, Diego Simeone taunting the Kop, and Adrian failing to guess where a single shot was going.
This famous victory at Anfield was preceded by some decent results, but a couple of draws, away at Espanyol and at home to Sevilla could well end up costing them dearly in the race to finish in the top four.
Here's how recent results have looked for the two sides...
Osasuna
Real Sociedad 1-1 Osasuna (14/6)
Osasuna 1-0 Espanyol (8/3)
Sevilla 3-2 Osasuna (1/3)
Osasuna 0-3 Granada (23/2)
Athletic Bilbao 0-1 Osasuna (16/2)
Atlético Madrid
Athletic Bilbao 1-1 Atlético Madrid (14/6)
Liverpool 2-3 Atlético Madrid (11/3)
Atlético Madrid 2-2 Sevilla (7/3)
Espanyol 1-1 Atlético Madrid (1/3)
Atlético Madrid 3-1 Villarreal (23/2)
Prediction
Unfortunately for Atleti, a game that they really need to make a statement will also be against one of the most tenacious sides in La Liga, who will sit tight and try their hardest to withstand whatever Simeone can throw at them.
Felix will of course be a boost on the creative side of things, but there is a broader sense in the red and white side of Madrid that something just isn't working at the moment.
With all this background noise, it's difficult to see Atlético blowing away a spirited Osasuna side, and another frustrating draw (maybe for both parties) seems the likeliest result.
Prediction: Osasuna 0-0 Atlético Madrid