Before we get to that industrial-sized international break, we have one less crunch class to preview- a Madrid derby that is absolutely huge for both sides. Atletico Madrid hosts Real Madrid in a match that has the entire football world talking this weekend. It is probably the biggest game of the weekend that preludes the first international window of the 2026-27 season.
The Metropolitano should be rocking for this one, so without further ado, let’s try to project the team sheet.
El Derbi Madrileño FYIs
Kickoff: Sun. Sept. 20, Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain
Team News: Real Madrid Atletico Madrid
Google’s Result Probability: Real Madrid 49% Draw 24% Atletico Madrid 27%
La Liga Standing, Form: Real Madrid 2nd, 15 pts WWLWW Atletico Madrid 4th, 13 pts DWLWW
So here is what we think Jose Mourinho and Diego Simeone will do, or at least should do, with their first teams. It’s all pretty straight-forward, as the strongest/most likely side just picks itself. The only real question pertains to Atletico and Julian Alvarez.
It certainly sounds like he will play, but it is still doubtful that he’ll be involved from the opening. He won’t likely go the full 90 either.
So should start, for both sides, in the Madrid Derby?
Real Madrid
Thibaut Courtois; Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konate, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella; Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni; Arda Guler, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr; Kylian Mbappe
Atletico Madrid
Jan Oblak; Marcos Llorente, Cristian Romero, Robin Le Normand, Alejandro Grimaldo; Lee Kang-in, Koke, Johnny Cardoso, Alex Baena; Jonathan David, Adeloma Lookman
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.