Athletic Bilbao vs Barcelona: Preview, Free Tip & Prediction

20.08.2021 15:00

Barcelona travels to the biggest city in the Basque Country to the Estadio San Mamés in the second round of the top Spanish competition.

Basic information, news and team form

Ronald Koeman's team made the best possible start to the new La Liga season, managing a 4-2 home win over another Basque club, Real Sociedad, at Camp Nou. Cabin leader Piqué was first on the scoresheet in this match, followed by Denmark's Martin Braithwaite in stoppage time of the first half. In the second half, Braithwaite scored his second goal and the visitors woke up and managed to answer with two goals, but instead of the equaliser, Barcelona managed to score an insurance fourth goal in injury time after a shot by Sergio Roberto. 

The Basques, who have been plagued by many injuries, have not been favoured by the drawing lot of this year's La Liga. In the next four games they will face 2 title aspirants in the form of Barcelona and Atletico.  

Bilbao played their last game at Elche, and a fairly even match ended in a goalless draw, and it remains the case that Athletic Bilbao has failed to win in 24 of their last 31 games and have only two wins at home since January.

 

 

Betdoin's view of the match 

Playing a Basque team is always difficult, and this is even more so in the case of home games. No wonder then, that even though Barcelona enter this duel as favourites after a great performance at Camp Nou, the bookmakers are pricing their win at odds of 1.91. This match looks more like an underdog, but even in terms of H2H, it's good to note that the Basques have always managed to play an even match with the Catalans and usually scored a goal. Our Algorithm sees great value in a bet on both of them to score, with the added value approaching to 0.4.

 

 

Absentees and estimated line-ups 

The Catalan club didn't pick up any new injuries in the match against Real Sociedad and Koeman, so he is likely to go with a similar eleven to the last game. Still, the Catalan giant will have to do without Ansuo Fati, Oscar Minguez, Sergio Aguero, Ousmane Dembele and Marc-Andre ter Stegen. 

Atletico will have to do without the services of Nolascoain, Kodra, Cordoba, Berniche and Petxa due to long-term injuries. Ander Capa is a doubt due to lack of training load. 

Bilbao - estimated line-up:

Agirrezabala - De Marcos, Alvarez, Martinez, Balenziaga - Berenguer, D Garcia, Vencedor, Muniain - Sancet, Williams

Barcelona - estimated line-up:

Neto - Dest, Pique, E Garcia, Alba - Pedri, Busquets, De Jong - Braithwaite, Memphis, Griezmann

 

Free tip for Bilbao vs Barcelona - both teams to score - yes (1,75)

 

Bilbao vs Barcelona FAQ:

Where to watch Bilbao vs Barcelona live on TV?  The match is live on ESPN+, LaLiga TV, beIn Sports HD 1 .

What players to watch during the match? Muniain, Williams, Griezmann, Braithwaite, Memphis . 

Who is the favourite for the match? According to the bookmakers, Barcelona is the favourite (1.91).

How did the last match between the two teams end? Bilbao 0:4 Barcelona, 17/4/2021. 

What time does the match start? Kick-off at 22:00. 

What stadium will the match be played in?  Estadio San Mamés 

Where can I find the match at Betdoin? Full statistics can be found here.

 

 

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