Relentless Real Madrid a reminder of what might have been for Atletico

Real Madrid were supposedly in a mess last summer and Atletico Madrid about to challenge for the title but each have defied expectations ahead of their meeting at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.

With Real marching to the top of La Liga and Atletico languishing in fifth, the city derby this weekend is less a contest of rivals and more a moderately awkward assignment for the now title favourites.

A local derby can have a rhythm of its own, as shown by Espanyol in 20th holding Barcelona in first to a 2-2 draw earlier this month.

But Atletico will need a similar reversal of form, after four games without a win, in which they have lost to Eibar, drawn at home to Leganes - now themselves last in La Liga - and been knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Cultural Leonesa of Segunda B.

And as Atleti have floundered, Real have flourished, extending an unbeaten run to 20 matches, during which they have conceded only nine goals and scored 45.

In term of competitions, Real have won the Spanish Super Cup, pulled three points clear at the top of La Liga and eased into the cup quarterfinals, all without the injured Eden Hazard.

"We are top of the table again after being there a long time ago," said captain Sergio Ramos. "We have to keep going."

When Zinedine Zidane returned as coach almost a year ago, many questioned not only the timing but the wisdom of retaking charge of an ageing squad, seemingly on an unerring trajectory of decline.

Sceptics were initially proven right as results and performances failed to improve and when a disjointed transfer window fed into a 7-3 pre-season defeat to Atletico, the talk was less about winning trophies and more about Zidane losing his job.

Yet Zidane weathered the storm, his management by calm and charm recovering the players and restoring the steel that made Real Madrid such a fierce opponent when they were last crowned Spanish champions in 2017.

"Defensively what we are doing we are doing very well, it is our strength," Zidane said last weekend.

Their transformation began at the back, where Atletico once owned the reputation for the most stubborn rearguard in Europe but in recent months even that defining characteristic has left them.