Alaves vs Atletico Madrid: Preview, team news, h2h – Lookman makes Mendizorrotza bow

Alaves vs Atletico Madrid is a fixture Super Eagles fans can look forward to as Ademola Lookman returns to La Liga action after a quiet international break for Nigeria.

Atlético Madrid travel to the Mendizorrotza on Saturday, October 10, 2026, aiming to stay within touching distance of the Spanish La Liga summit.

A lot could depend on whether they get enough service down the left, the flank where Ademola Lookman operates, against a Deportivo Alavés side missing three senior centre-backs.

Kickoff in this La Liga Matchday 8 fixture is 15:15 WAT, 16:15 local time, at a Vitoria-Gasteiz ground where the hosts have had to patch together a defence from whatever is left standing. This will be the first time in his career that Lookman will play against Alaves and at the Mendizorrotza.

Diego Simeone's side sit second in La Liga, five points off leaders Barcelona, while Alavés occupy sixth position after a mixed run of results. The visitors go into the weekend on the back of a derby win over Real Madrid, though a Champions League match against Manchester United four days later means Simeone must also manage his squad's workload carefully.

Match Facts · Deportivo Alavés vs Atlético Madrid

Competition: La Liga 2026/27, Matchday 8

Date: October 10, 2026

Kickoff: 15:15 WAT (16:15 local)

Venue: Estadio Mendizorrotza, Vitoria-Gasteiz

League positions: Deportivo Alavés 6th · Atlético Madrid 2nd

Last meeting: Atlético Madrid 1-0 Deportivo Alavés, January 18, 2026

Nigeria connection: Ademola Lookman (Atlético Madrid, Super Eagles forward)

Form guide: Alavés vs Atlético Madrid head into Matchday 8

Atlético have won four of their last five league matches, with that derby win over Real Madrid and a comfortable four-nil defeat of Osasuna the standout results, and their only loss in the run a three-nil reverse at Athletic Club on September 19.

Alavés, by contrast, have won only one of their last three matches, losing one-nil at home to Valencia and two-one away at Racing Santander, though their previous outing produced a five-two win over Osasuna in which Lucas Boyé scored a hat-trick.

Mariano Díaz has three goals and three assists from only three starts, and Ángel Pérez has added three assists of his own, so Alavés are not purely reliant on Boyé for goals despite their problems at the other end.

The table reflects the gap in results. Atlético sit second on sixteen points from seven games, while Alavés occupy sixth spot on eleven points, a gap that has widened since the sides last met.

Alaves vs Atletico Madrid: Head-to-head

Alavés have lost only once at home to Atlético in the last two seasons, a two-nil defeat in April 2024 that remains the away side's only win at the Mendizorrotza in that period.

Two draws, 1-1 in August 2025 and nil-nil in May 2025, also came in Vitoria-Gasteiz, while Atlético's two wins in the five-match sequence, including the most recent one-nil success in January, were both recorded at home in Madrid.

Overall, Atlético have the stronger record, with 34 league meetings producing 20 wins for the Madrid club against seven for Alavés and seven draws, though that history stretches back decades and says little about Saturday's specific matchup.

Alaves vs Atletico Madrid: Key battles

Lookman vs Jonny: the left-side duel

Lookman has started six of Atlético's seven league games this season from the left of a front two, cutting inside off that flank rather than hugging the touchline, and his direct opponent on Saturday is likely to be Jonny, the versatile defender Alavés have used across the back line this season.

Lookman has found the net only once in La Liga so far, in the 3-1 win at Sevilla in August, so the duel is as much about whether he can create space as whether he finishes it.

Jonny's own defensive workload has grown heavier with Facundo Garcés and Mikel Rodríguez both missing through long-term injury, and if Alavés are forced to shuffle their back line again to cope, the space Lookman has been hunting all season could finally open up.

Boyé vs Atlético's makeshift back line

Lucas Boyé's hat-trick against Osasuna makes him the player most likely to trouble a Cristian Romero and Dávid Hancko central pairing that has conceded seven goals in seven league games, a reasonable return but one built against opposition rarely as direct as Alavés have been in their better moments this season.

Boyé needs service to be a threat, and with Toni Martínez his only senior strike partner, the responsibility for creating that service falls heavily on Alavés's wide players, Abderrahman Rebbach in particular. If Atlético's centre-backs are pulled wide to deal with Rebbach's running, the lanes Boyé exploited against Osasuna could open up again here.

Alaves vs Atletico Madrid: Team news

Alejandro Grimaldo is back training with the Atlético squad after a quadriceps problem picked up on international duty, though Simeone may manage his minutes given the midweek Champions League fixture, and Lee Kang-in's ankle knock is still being assessed by the club's medical staff.

Alexander Sørloth is back in training after a calf injury but has yet to feature this season, while Pablo Barrios has returned to full fitness in central midfield.

Predicted XI (4-4-2): Oblak; Pubill, Romero, Hancko, Grimaldo; Baena, Llorente, Cardoso, G. Simeone; Lee Kang-in, Lookman.

Alavés remain without Facundo Garcés and Mikel Rodríguez, both out with cruciate ligament injuries until around April, and Ville Koski, sidelined by a thigh problem until early November, so Quique Sánchez Flores is again forced into an unfamiliar back line.

Predicted XI (5-3-2): Sivera; Jonny, Tenaglia, Valentini; Rebbach, Ibáñez, Suárez, Blanco, Pérez; Martínez, Boyé.

Lookman and the Super Eagles

Lookman started Nigeria's opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, a 2-1 win over Madagascar in Uyo on September 25, though he was booked and substituted in the 69th minute without getting on the scoresheet himself.

Four days later, Nigeria lost 3-0 away to Guinea-Bissau, a result that leaves Éric Chelle's side on three points in Group L, behind Guinea-Bissau on six after two matches.

Victor Osimhen missed both qualifiers through injury, which put extra scoring responsibility on Nigeria's other forward options, and Lookman had said beforehand that the aim was to take maximum points from the opening two matchdays, a target the Guinea-Bissau defeat put out of reach.

The qualifiers resume in the November 9 to 17 window, by which point his form in front of goal for Atlético, currently just the one league strike, is likely to matter again when Chelle picks his squad.

Alaves vs Soccernet Madrid: Soccernet prediction

The Verdict

Alavés 1-2 Atlético Madrid

Atlético's superior recent form and attacking depth should be enough for an away win, even with Grimaldo and Lee Kang-in short of full sharpness, though Boyé's scoring form against a stretched Atlético defence suggests the hosts will get a goal of their own. Likely scorers: Baena for Atlético, Boyé for Alavés.