Vilanova on guard ahead of Atletico test

Barcelona head coach Tito Vilanova knows his side face a tough task to win their La Liga blockbuster against Atletico Madrid on Sunday.

Both sides have made a stunning start to the current season, with Barcelona undefeated and on top of the league, having won 43 of a possible 45 points.

Atletico – who have 37 points and sit second – are also in good form and are five points clear of city rivals Real Madrid.

The much-anticipated clash at Nou Camp will pit the league’s top two strikers – Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Atletico’s Radamel Falcao – against each other and Vilanova is wary of his side’s opponents.

“Every match is important, but it is true that Atletico is just behind us,” Vilanova said.

“However, every single match is important to us. On the other hand, all the points we can add up is very positive. But this match is important because the level that Atletico is showing is very high and tomorrow will be, for sure, a difficult game.”

Vilanova made special mention of Atletico’s manager Diego Simeone, who arrived at the club in December last year.

He quickly transformed the fortunes of the club and has led them to UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup victories.

“Arriving at the middle of the season and changing a negative trend is very difficult, because if you arrive at the middle of the season is because the dynamic is bad, therefore changing it is very difficult,” Vilanova said.

“However, Simeone managed to change that last year and he made an incredible end of the season, in La Liga, in Europa League and winning the Supercup of Europe.

“The beginning this year has been great for them, because if we had not added up so many points it is very probable they would be in front (of the league) so everything he did has a lot of merit, because nowadays Atletico, as team, believes in themselves.”