La Liga: Valencia vs. Atlético Madrid

Posted on | May 15, 2008 | No Comments

Well Valencia managed to scrape a victory over Zaragoza and then last weekend beat already relegated Levante by five goals to one, which means that they no longer have to fear being relegated. How a team as big as Valencia can allow themselves to get in such a predicament though is anyone’s guess, and there will have to be an enormous rebuilding job during the summer. Valencia though have serious financial problems, and it has already been made known that David Villa, David Silva and Joaquin will be sold off once the league is finished.
Atlético Madrid on the other hand are already celebrating getting back into the Champions league after an eleven year absence. Coach Javier Aguirre has been criticized all season, even by his own president, but it looks as if he will be carrying on the new project come September. This last game of the season is a mere formality then, and Atlético Madrid are only playing for the faint hope of finishing third if Barcelona lose to Murcia.
Valencia’s fans will be given one last chance to vent their spleen this season, and even though the club will show off the King’s cup they recently won in the final against Getafe, I doubt if the fans will be too bothered by it. They have had to suffer a lot more than any of the big teams this year, and the best Valencia can do now is finish ninth, almost thirty points behind title winners Real Madrid. The only truly good thing to come out of Valencia’s season is entrance to the UEFA cup due to the King’s cup victory, but even that is of little consolation after months of bad play, internal struggles and players rebelling.
I’m going for an away win here. Valencia just want the season to end in order to start the rebuilding process, and I shouldn’t wonder if caretaker coach Voro will leave out a few key players. Albelda, Vicente, and Marchena haven’t trained due to various physical problems, and it is more than likely that they won’t pull on the Valencia shirt again.
Prediction: Away win (1-3)

Related posts:

1. La Liga: Atlético Madrid vs. Valencia
2. La Liga: Atlético Madrid vs Barcelona
3. La Liga: Sevilla vs. Atlético Madrid
4. La Liga: Racing de Santander vs. Atlético Madrid
5. La Liga: Villarreal — Atlético Madrid

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