Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya says he expects a tight encounter when his team hosts defending champions Barcelona in La Liga on Saturday.
Barca won all four meetings they had with Atletico last season but the Rojiblancos strengthened their team this summer and the 31-year-old goalkeeper says not much separates the two sides.
"It's a game of equals," Moya told Marca. "We hope it will be a game of direct rivals for the league title. If you do everything very well, you can compete against these teams.
"It's very early to speak about this [Primera Division title race] but right now, this is a duel between two of the best teams in La Liga and in Europe."
Atletico won the Primera Division title two years ago and finished third behind Real Madrid and Barcelona in 2014-15. But the Rojiblancos struggled against the Catalan giants last season, falling 3-1 at the Camp Nou in La Liga back in January before being knocked out the Copa del Rey by Barca with a 4-2 aggregate loss.
A Lionel Messi goal gave Barca a 1-0 triumph at the Vicente Calderon stadium in the league back in May, the last time the two sides faced each other.
"Last year, they had the upper hand but now we have the possibility to beat them," Moya said. "Barcelona has sufficient potential to overcome their absences, just as we do. Their bench is of a first-class level. We hope, though, they don't do a good job."
Barca will not be at full strength for this weekend's encounter as Brazilian defenders Dani Alves and Douglas Pereira are injured and Gerard Pique is suspended. While Atletico will have 12 players returning from international duty in the next 48 hours, they are not fearing a drop of form this weekend.
"They will have a lot of players that will arrive late [from international duty] just as we will," Moya said. "So I don't think this will be an advantage."
Atletico, under coach Diego Simeone, have done particularly well in their first league game after returning from international breaks the past few seasons. They have won 4-3 against Rayo Vallecano, 4-2 at home to Almeria and 12 months ago, they edged Real Madrid 2-1 at the Bernabeu stadium.
Atletico are one of four teams, including Barca, who have had a perfect start to La Liga after two games played and Moya knows his side must keep up their solid defensive work to take a positive result against Barca.
Atletico must brace themselves for a challenging month that will see them play seven games -- five in La Liga and two in the Champions League -- in 22 days.
"Our defensive potential will be key against Barcelona. It will more than 50 percent of the game," he said. "It's important for us to begin this stretch of games in the best possible way. It would be a big motivation."