Prediction: Atletico Madrid vs Athletic Bilbao

Prediction: Draw

Best Odds: 9/4

Bookmaker: 888sport

La Liga football returns this week with another full slate of action from Spanish football’s top tier. Things are looking pretty tight both at the top and the bottom of the table but given that we’re still just coming out of the winter break, many teams are only just getting into a real rhythm. Today, we’ll be taking a look at what should be an interesting clash between Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao.

Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid are way, way too far off the pace in the La Liga title race by their own standards. They started off the campaign in a sort of ‘rebuilding’ phase and they’ve only really just started to get going again. They’re firmly situated in the race for a Champions League spot but over the course of the next few months, they’ll really be pushed to the limit – especially by their opponents on Sunday.

Team News

Atletico have a clean bill of health with no injuries or suspensions to worry about.

Athletic Bilbao

In recent times, Athletic Bilbao have proven that they can mix it up with just about anyone on both the domestic and European stage. They’ve always been a club that knows how to stick to its morals and with a passionate fanbase behind them, it’s understandable to see why. Moving forward, their goal will be to continue to make progress both in La Liga and in the cup – although things have been up and down this season.

Team News

Martinez is out of action through injury and the same is true for Herrera.

Factors to Consider

• Atletico are 4th in La Liga with 38 points whereas Bilbao are 7th with 32 points.
• Atletico have won four, drawn one and lost one of their last six games.
• Bilbao have won four and lost two of their last six games.
• Atletico have scored nine goals and conceded four in their last six games.
• Bilbao have scored 10 goals and conceded six in their last six games.

Conclusion

We expect this to be a really tight game with Atletico, at times, having to hold firm at the back – which they’ve been pretty good at doing this season with just seven goals conceded in the league. Bilbao will have to ride out an initial storm before slowly upping the tempo, which should lead to a pretty entertaining second half. In the end, we expect this to end in an entertaining 1-1 draw.

Prediction: Draw

Best Odds: 9/4

Bookmaker: 888sport