Real Madrid will look to make it three wins in a row when they host Athetlic Bilaco at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Zinedine Zidane’s men have yet to lose a game this season, but a few frustrating draws see them placed at third in the table, behind defending champions Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
The Spanish giants are coming off the back of a 5-1 thrashing of Legia Warsaw, a game in which Gareth Bale, Marcos Asesnsio, Lucas Vasquez and Alvaro Morata all got on the score sheet. They will be looking to continue their impressive 14-match unbeaten run against Athletic Bilbao.
Athletic Bilbao have also had a very good start to the season, having won 5 of their 6 fixtures so far. However, the club lost to Genk in the Europa League in midweek, and are currently bottom of their group in that competition.
Team News and Tactics
Real Madrid
Madrid have a few key players out, with Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric and Casemiro all missing out through injury. Zidane’s side have been very inconsistent defensively, and will have to be very solid in defense against a Bilbao side that have been very tight as an attacking unit.
Speaking after the game against Warsaw, Zidane was full of praise for Cristiano Ronaldo, who failed to get on the score sheet but did assist two goals. Zidane will be looking for a similar performance from Ronaldo, although this time he will be hoping the striker can contribute with goals as well. Bilbao have also been quite inconsistent defensively, so Madrid will be looking to attack them and put the defense under constant pressure.
Zidane has been utilising a 4-3-3 formation, and will likely stick to this formation. Isco has been in fine form as well, and will start the game in the absence of Modric.
Probable line-up (4-3-3): Navas; Carvajal, Pepe, Varane, Marcelo; Isco, Kroos, Rodriguez; Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo
Athletic Bilbao
Defender Yeray Alvarez suffered an ankle injury in the Genk match and will miss the trip to the Bernabeu. Atletic Bilbao have no other major injury concerns, and will likely line-up the same way they did against Genk. The Basque side have been in fine form in La Liga, but are also suffering from defensive issues at the moment. The absence of Alvarez will only further compound this issue.
Bilbao coach Ernesto Valverde earlier this week criticised his side’s performance in their first half against Genk, and they will definitely have to start a lot sharper against Madrid if they want to come away with a result. Striker Aritz Aduriz, who has scored 5 goals in 8 games this season, will be key to their performance, and providing him with the right service will go a long way to scoring some points.
Valverde employs a 4-2-3-1 formation, and will stick to this against Zinedine Zidane’s side.
Probable line-up (4-2-3-1): Kepa; Marcos, Yeray, Laporte, Lekue; Benat, Iturraspe; Susaeta, Muniain, Williams; Aduriz
Key Stats
- Both teams have played 48 games against each other in the past
- Real Madrid have won 31 games, drawn 6 and lost 11 to Athletic Bilbao
- At Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid have won 20 games, drawn 1 and lost 3 games to Athletic Bilbao
- Madrid have also outscored them hugely – they have scored 112 goals and conceded 46 goals against Bilbao
- Madrid have dominated their last 6 games, with 4 wins, a draw and a defeat to Bilbao.
Prediction: Real Madrid 2-1 Athletic Bilbao
Expect this to be a free-flowing game, as both sides have been very good going forward, while both have shown defensive frailties. This will be a huge treat for the neutral, as both sides love to attack.
That said, they will likely be wary of each other as well, and as a result we won’t see too many goals being scored this game. Artiz Aduriz will have to continue his fine form here if Athletic hope to secure any points, but Madrid’s attack might just prove to be too overwhelming for the Basque side.