La Liga: Bilbao Out to Continue Stellar Form Against Struggling Sevilla

Athletic Bilbao vs Sevilla

Ernesto Valverde’s Athletic Club hope that after the final whistle is blown on Sunday, all three points will stay at San Mames as his side face Sevilla at home.

This classic La Liga clash is one to watch, and, despite Sevilla’s continued inconsistencies in recent years, they still remain a dangerous outfit capable of upsetting the top clubs from which they used to share the European spots with.

Bilbao will enter this match on the back of a three-match winning run in the league, which helped catapult them into fifth place, and a win will be extremely beneficial to them in a tight La Liga table.

After a heartbreaking loss to Atletico Madrid—in a match that saw Angel Correa give Atletico the win in added time—Los Leones used Celta Vigo, Las Palmas and Leganes as launch pads to keep them within striking distance at the top.

Sevilla, meanwhile, are in an up-and-down tempo so far. Regardless, Los Nervionenses can take solace in the fact that after starting their first four games in a horrid manner (2D-2L), they’ve won two of their last three games.

Still, they’ve got plenty of holes to fix, especially the fact that they’ve received a red card in three of their last four matches.

 

Talking Points

A close escape in Rome

Athletic Club opened their Europa League outing with a 1-1 draw against Roma.

The home side netted first through Artem Dovbyk’s 32^nd-minute header, hoping to give their new boss a second win in a row.

But Valverde’s side showed toughness and battled hard for an equaliser, to which they were finally rewarded when Aitor Paredes headed in Unai Nunez’s headed pass in the 85^th minute.

After the match, Valverde mentioned that he was glad with his team’s performance despite missing out on a win.

“It was a very hard-fought match. We started off very well in the first 15-20 minutes, but then we suffered because they pushed us back a lot. In the second half we came out with more determination, we pushed hard and that’s where we got our reward,” he said after the match.

With Bilbao in an upbeat mood under a very capable manager in Valverde, Los Leones are one of the tougher clubs to deal with in the Spanish top flight.

And if Sevilla will wake up on the wrong side of the bed come matchday, then it’s going to be a long 90 minutes for them.

 

Garcia Pimienta extends his Sevilla tenure

When Sevilla appointed Garcia Pimienta to handle the squad for this season, he became the fifth manager at Los Nervionenses’ helm since Julen Lopetegui was sacked in 2022, with the club increasingly finding it difficult to regain their identity as one of Spain’s best clubs.

But despite a shaky start to the year, the Sevilla higher-ups felt that, perhaps, it is now the time to stick with a coach on a long-term plan.

Pimienta then had put pen to paper, as he signed an extension that lasts until 2027—the contract signing, done after Sevilla’s 2-1 victory over Real Valladolid.

Should Sevilla take a convincing result at San Mames, then the future may not look so bleak for the seven-time Europa League winners.

 

History

A fixture entrenched in La Liga history, Athletic Club and Sevilla have long been mainstays of the Spanish top flight, with both clubs on the list of the winningest teams in Spain.

Los Leones are third in the trophy list behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, winning 36 major honours overall. Meanwhile, Sevilla claim the sixth spot with 15 trophies to their name.

Since 2003, Bilbao and Sevilla have met 49 times, with the latter claiming a winning record (26W-4D-19L).

But it is the Basque outfit who are currently enjoying better times against their foes from Seville, winning both their league encounters last season with a score line of 2-0. Los Leones are also the defending Copa del Rey champions; hence, Bilbao are coming into this match as the SBOTOP La Liga 2024 betting odds favourite.

 

Betting Tip

A fixture that will feature plenty of La Liga 2024 highlights, Sevilla will put their best foot forward against a favoured Bilbao side. It won’t be an easy match-up for Ernesto Valverde and his men, but I’m comfortable that they will have enough to take three points from the visitors.

At 4.54, Sevilla are huge underdogs for this one, but should not be underestimated as they can eke out a win at any given time. Meanwhile, a draw is priced at 3.42.

And with Athletic Club’s leading scorer in Oihan Sancet doubtful on Sunday, Sevilla’s chances of winning no doubt improve. Still, with the likes of Gorka Guruzeta, Nico and Inaki Williams, Aitor Paredes and Unai Nunez, a Bilbao win—for my money—is an easy choice.

   

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