First will head to third in La Liga on Sunday evening, as Barcelona travel to the Spanish capital to tackle Atletico Madrid.
Barcelona are currently top of the La Liga table, ahead of second-placed Real Madrid on the head-to-head record, while the Catalan giants sit one point clear of third-placed Atletico.
Hansi Flick's side have a game in hand over the two capital teams, meanwhile, as their contest with Osasuna, which was scheduled for last Saturday, was postponed at the final moment.
Barcelona have since been in Champions League action, booking their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition courtesy of a 3-1 success over Benfica in the second leg of their last-16 clash.
Atletico, meanwhile, were beaten by Real Madrid on penalties in the European Cup, but Diego Simeone's side are still fighting on two fronts this season, with the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final against Barcelona taking place on April 2.
Here, Sports Mole looks at the head-to-head record and past meetings between Atletico and Barcelona ahead of what is shaping up to be a fascinating clash at Wanda Metropolitano.
© Imago
Head-to-head record
Previous meetings: 244
Atletico wins: 77
Draws: 57
Barcelona wins: 110
Barcelona lead the overall head-to-head record between the two sides, having recorded 110 wins to Atletico's 77, while there have also been 57 draws in this particular fixture.
The Catalan outfit have also comfortably outscored their opponents, finding the back of the net on 460 occasions in their 244 matches against Atletico, while the capital outfit have managed 354.
Lionel Messi is the leading goalscorer in this fixture, finding the back of the net on 32 occasions against Atletico, which is 16 ahead of Cesar Rodriguez in second position.
Unsurprisingly, Barcelona also lead the head-to-head record in La Liga, winning 80 of their 175 matches to Atletico's 53, while there have also been 42 draws in Spain's top flight.
Ten of the last 11 meetings between these two sides have come in La Liga, and Barcelona had been on a five-game winning run against Atletico at that level, including 1-0 and 3-0 successes during the 2023-24 campaign.
However, Atletico shocked their rivals in December 2024 with a 2-1 victory at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, with Alexander Sorloth netting a last-gasp winner.
Atletico went five games unbeaten against the Catalan side between January 2020 and October 2021, winning three times during that run, including twice in the league.
The capital outfit's success over Barcelona in their last league meeting, meanwhile, proved to be their first away victory over the Catalan giants since February 2006.
The two teams also locked horns in February 2025 in the Copa del Rey, with a 4-4 draw occurring in the first leg of their semi-final, and the return fixture is set to take place at the start of April.
Last 20 meetings
Feb 25, 2025: Barcelona 4-4 Atletico (Copa del Rey Semi-Finals)
Dec 21, 2024: Barcelona 1-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Apr 17, 2024: Atletico 0-3 Barcelona (La Liga)
Dec 03, 2023: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Apr 23, 2023: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Jan 08, 2023: Atletico 0-1 Barcelona (La Liga)
Feb 06, 2022: Barcelona 4-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Oct 02, 2021: Atletico 2-0 Barcelona (La Liga)
May 08, 2021: Barcelona 0-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Nov 21, 2020: Atletico 1-0 Barcelona (La Liga)
Jun 30, 2020: Barcelona 2-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Jan 09, 2020: Barcelona 2-3 Atletico (Spanish Super Cup Semi-Finals)
Dec 01, 2019: Atletico 0-1 Barcelona (La Liga)
Apr 06, 2019: Barcelona 2-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Nov 24, 2018: Atletico 1-1 Barcelona (La Liga)
Mar 04, 2018: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Oct 14, 2017: Atletico 1-1 Barcelona (La Liga)
Feb 26, 2017: Atletico 1-2 Barcelona (La Liga)
Feb 07, 2017: Barcelona 1-1 Atletico (Copa del Rey Semi-Finals)
Feb 01, 2017: Atletico 1-2 Barcelona (Copa del Rey Semi-Finals)
Last 10 La Liga meetings
Dec 21, 2024: Barcelona 1-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Apr 17, 2024: Atletico 0-3 Barcelona (La Liga)
Dec 03, 2023: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Apr 23, 2023: Barcelona 1-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Jan 08, 2023: Atletico 0-1 Barcelona (La Liga)
Feb 06, 2022: Barcelona 4-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Oct 02, 2021: Atletico 2-0 Barcelona (La Liga)
May 08, 2021: Barcelona 0-0 Atletico (La Liga)
Nov 21, 2020: Atletico 1-0 Barcelona (La Liga)
Jun 30, 2020: Barcelona 2-2 Atletico (La Liga)
Matt Law
