The Madrid derby in the Copa del Rey last 16 tonight has a dash of extra spice (as if it needed it), with Fernando Torres returning to the club where he made his name.

In a bizarre move, days after it was announced that Torres was to join AC Milan permanently, after being loaned out from Chelsea at the start of the season, it was revealed that Torres was on his way back to Atletico Madrid on loan from Milan themselves. Subsequently Atletico have seen record shirt sales as a surge of excitement swept through the club at the return of perhaps Atletico’s greatest golden boy. Yet the pressure will be on Torres, as he has to face once more the high expectations that have dogged him since his move to Chelsea.

However, if there is a chance he can redeem himself, it might be now. Real Madrid recently had their 22-game winning run halted at Valencia on Sunday, and with Atletico scoring in 15 of their last 16 games, Torres may have a chance to sink the great ship Real and fully cement himself in the hearts of Atletico fans once more.



In La Liga, things are tight at the top, with Atletico in third, level on points with Barcelona in 2nd, whilst Real are on top by a point with a game in hand. Atletico have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 1 in their last 6 games, and will face a tough test tonight; however, Real Madrid have failed to beat Atletico inside 90 minutes in their last five meetings.

This is not to say Real Madrid are in anything resembling a weak position. They have averaged 3.5 goals per game in the league, 2.7 goals per game in the Champions League and 4.5 goals per game in the Copa del Ray. And with Cristiano Ronaldo having scored 33 this season, he is unsurprisingly favourite to score first at 10/3 fixed odds betting. Karim Benzema is on 14 goals at 7/1, with Welsh-wonder Gareth Bale on 11 goals at 13/2. The returning Torres is at 7/1; the man who now wears Torres’ number 9 shirt, and Atletico top scorer, Mario Mandzukic, is at 11/2 on 14 goals, whilst Antoine Griezmann is at 15/2 on 11 goals.

Spreadex offer in-play betting on all La Liga games, and this Copa del Rey tie tonight is no different. All these stats would point to a tight game, without even taking into consideration the fact that this is a Madrid derby in Spain’s premier cup competition, with our traders expecting a lively affair offering a Bookings quote of 70-74 (10 points per yellow, 25 per red with a maximum of 35 per player). Considering the form of both teams, here at Spreadex we are narrowly fancying a Real win, at a Real Madrid/Atletico Madrid (h) Goal Supremacy spread betting quote of 0.25-0.45, with the promise of goals at a Total Goals spread betting quote 2.5-2.7.