Rayo Majadahonda vs Atletico Madrid

Rayo Majadahonda and Atletico Madrid are set to trade tackles in their Copa del Rey last-32 tie at the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano.

Rayo Majadahonda have eked out narrow 1-0 wins over fellow lower-league side Eldense and Segunda Division outfit Malaga in the previous two Copa del Rey rounds to set up this tie. Indeed, entertainment has been relatively sparse in Rayo’s recent competitive fixtures, with four of the last five seeing one or both sides fail to score in matches garnering under 1.5 total goals. Stripped of home comforts, the nominal third-tier hosts will need a miracle to get past Atletico Madrid in their own backyard. Yet, a return of four clean sheets from their last five competitive outings could inspire their hopes of stagging an upset in the nation’s capital. A lack of competitive action could throw a spanner in the works, though, as the ‘Majariegos’ last played a game in mid-December.

Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid claimed a comfortable 2-0 home win over fellow La Liga top-four contenders Rayo Vallecano to get their 2022 competitive start off to a flying start. However, Diego Simeone’s side experienced a nightmarish end to the last calendar year, losing four league matches in a row, three of which via the same 2-1 scoreline. Therefore, there’s no room for complacency at ‘Los Colchoneros’ despite their status as odds-on favorites in this tie. Indeed, before the abovementioned triumph over Vallecano, Atletico had lost successive competitive games at the Wanda Metropolitano. A shutout against sub-par opposition is one of Simeone’s top priorities here, as his men have failed to keep back-to-back clean sheets in domestic affairs this season.