City rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid renew their long-running feud on Thursday when they clash in the Spanish Super Cup semifinal in Jeddah, a high-stakes meeting that offers silverware and momentum, at a pivotal point of the season.
Atletico arrive chasing a fourth Super Cup crown and a chance to reset a campaign that has drifted off the La Liga title pace.
Diego Simeone’s side are unbeaten in five competitive matches, but Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad felt like a missed opportunity.
Alexander Sorloth struck against his former club shortly after halftime, only for Goncalo Guedes to respond swiftly, leaving Atleti fourth and 11 points behind leaders Barcelona at the midway mark.
With the league likely out of reach, the Super Cup, Copa del Rey and Champions League now carry added weight for a club without a major trophy since 2021.
Atletico qualified for this tournament via last season’s third-place finish and are seeking a third title in the competition, having previously lifted it in 1985 and 2014.
Yet the four-team Super Cup format has rarely been kind to Simeone’s men.
They have won just one semifinal under the current structure, a 3-2 victory over Barcelona in 2020, before losing the final to Real Madrid on penalties.
Since then, Atletico have fallen at the semifinal stage to Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid in 2022 and 2024, underscoring the challenge of reaching Sunday’s final against either Barcelona or Athletic.
Still, Atletico can draw confidence from the most recent Madrid derby.
In September, Julian Alvarez scored twice in a thunderous 5-2 home win over Real Madrid, the first time Atleti had hit five past their rivals in nearly 75 years, a result that lingers as both a warning and a source of belief.
Real Madrid, by contrast, arrive buoyed by form.
New coach Xabi Alonso has eased early pressure with four straight victories, capped by Sunday’s commanding 5-1 home win over Real Betis despite the absence of injured Kylian Mbappe.
Gonzalo Garcia seized the spotlight, scoring with his right foot, left foot and head to become the youngest player this century to net a perfect La Liga hat-trick, at 21 years and 286 days.
Raul Asencio and Fran Garcia also scored as Madrid secured their eighth home win in nine league matches, trimming Barcelona’s lead to four points after the leaders beat Espanyol.
Two more victories in Saudi Arabia would hand Alonso his first trophy since succeeding Carlo Ancelotti last summer.
Madrid’s Super Cup pedigree is formidable.
Los Blancos are chasing a 14th title and have won three of the six editions in the four-team era, most recently in 2024, when they edged Atletico 5-3 after extra time in the semifinal before dismantling Barcelona 4-1 in the final.
They have reached the final in all but one of those tournaments, the lone exception a 2021 semifinal defeat to Athletic Club.
Even so, derby history offers Atletico encouragement.
Real Madrid have beaten Atleti in regulation time just once in their last seven meetings and have not kept a clean sheet in this fixture since December 2021.
Team news could yet tilt the balance. Atletico will be without Clement Lenglet and Nicolas Gonzalez, while Pablo Barrios is doubtful after a calf issue forced him off at halftime on Sunday.
Conor Gallagher, Johnny Cardoso and Koke are options in midfield and Robin Le Normand is pushing to start after a second-half cameo against Real Sociedad.
Real Madrid will again be without Mbappe, who remains sidelined by a knee injury.
Eder Militao misses out with a hamstring problem, Brahim Diaz is away at the Africa Cup of Nations and right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold’s fitness remains uncertain.
Dean Huijsen could return to the back line if he overcomes a minor injury.
