Preview: Atletico Madrid v Getafe

Atlético Madrid are back in action today, as the Rojiblancos return to the Vicente Calderón to face Getafe in some midweek La Liga action.

Atleti have won the previous four in this mini-derby and have not lost (or even conceded) since November 2011. Last season, Atleti won 1-0 at the Alfonso Pérez and 2-0 at the Calderón. Both sides won their respective games in round four, Atleti getting the best of Eibar and Getafe notching win #1 of the season over Málaga.

The big pre-game news centers around the absence of Koke. The 23-year-old midfield maestro left Saturday’s game with a hamstring strain (although it is certainly possible that he picked up the injury earlier) and has been ruled out of this one, leaving Diego Simeone an opportunity to tinker in midfield and on set pieces. Koke will likely miss out on this weekend’s clash with Villarreal at El Madrigal but he should be okay for Benfica next Wednesday.

Atleti XI: Oblak; Juanfran, Godin, Savic, Siqueira; Gabi, Saul, Oliver, Carrasco; Torres, Griezmann.

Getafe XI: Guaita; Alexis, Vigaray, Suarez, Vergini, Pedro Leon, Rodriguez, Medran, Lafita, Rodriguez, Scepovic.

(courtesy of @InsideLaLiga)

As expected, Cholo has chosen to rotate a bit today. Stefan Savic will make his Atleti debut and Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco will make his first start in the red and white. Guilherme Siqueira was good against Galatasaray and has been afforded another opportunity here. Jackson Martinez and Luciano Vietto are back on the bench as El Nino returns to the XI.