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2021/22 Spanish La Liga
Matchday 20
Villarreal v Atletico Madrid
Estadio de la Ceramica
Villarreal, Spain
Sunday, 9 January 2022
Kick-off is at 20h00
Atletico Madrid will be looking to make it two wins from two in the New Year when they lock horns with Villarreal at La Ceramica on January 9.
The defending
La Liga champions endured a disappointing festive period which saw them lose all five matches during the month of December.
That poor run allowed city rivals Real Madrid to open up a 14-point gap to them at the top of the table, although Los Colchoneros do have a game in hand.
Diego Simeone's side will be hoping for better fortunes in 2022 after they kicked off the year with a 2-0 victory over neighbours Rayo Vallecano.
Atleti might tackle the second half of the season without Kieran Trippier, who has been heavily linked with a return to England at Newcastle.
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Simeone is keen to keep the former Tottenham defender, but admits the decision is not up to him.
"Kieran is an extraordinary player. He has always given us a lot and he is a very important player for us," the Argentine said.
"Prior to the game [against Vallecano] I said the decision will always come down to the player and his future will depend on that. We hope he stays with us, but we can't hold him back if he wants to leave."
The Yellow Submarine have been in fine form of late, scoring five goals in each of their last two outings to beat Alaves 5-2 and Levante 5-0.
The thrashing of Les Granotes on January 3 made it four wins on the spin for Unai Emery's team, who moved up to eighth in the table on 28 points, four shy of the top-four.
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Speaking to the press after the clash, Emery underlined the importance of keeping the momentum going as they head into the second half of the campaign.
"We have good objectives and today we've taken an important step forward on the line we want to be on," he said.
"The team, despite the absences and the players that are heading to the Africa Cup of Nations, need to be ready to show its credentials and achieve something important.
"What's positive is that there is a lot of the season left, and we need to set ourselves challenges that constantly motivate us to continue working hard to try and fulfil them."
Head-to-Head (La Liga Meetings)
Matches - 41
Villarreal - 15
Atletico Madrid - 14
Draws - 12
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