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Athletic Bilbao logo
La Liga | Gameweek 18
Dec 19, 2021 at 3.15pm UK
San Mames
Real Betis logo

Athletic Bilbao
3 - 2
Real Betis

Williams (2', 72'), de Marcos (89')
Zarraga (58')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Juanmi (6'), Fekir (52')
Fekir (49'), Rodriguez (58'), Pellegrini (90+2')

Preview: Athletic Bilbao vs. Real Betis - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's La Liga clash between Athletic Bilbao and Real Betis, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Real Betis will be bidding to make it five La Liga victories in a row when they head to San Mames on Sunday afternoon to take on Athletic Bilbao.

The visitors are currently third in the table, just one point behind second-placed Sevilla, while Athletic occupy 11th, having picked up 21 points from their opening 17 matches of the campaign.


Match preview

Athletic Bilbao players celebrate scoring against Barcelona on August 21, 2021© Reuters

Athletic have won four, drawn nine and lost four of their 17 league matches this season to collect 21 points, which has left them in 11th position in the table heading into the next set of fixtures in Spain's top flight.

The Basque outfit are only three points off eighth-placed Barcelona but are without a win in the league since October 23, when they recorded a 2-1 victory over Villarreal on home soil.

Since the clash with the Yellow Submarine, Athletic have played eight times in Spain's top flight, drawing five times and suffering three defeats, and they will enter this weekend's contest off the back of a 1-0 home loss to Sevilla on December 11.

Marcelino's side have a difficult end to 2021, facing Real Betis and Real Madrid in back-to-back home matches, and they could easily find themselves sliding down the table with two disappointing results.

Real Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini on September 30, 2021© Reuters

Real Betis, meanwhile, have performed above expectations in Span's top flight this season, picking up 33 points from their 17 matches to sit third in the table, just one point behind second-placed Sevilla.

Manuel Pellegrini's side are nine points behind league leaders Real Madrid but have a four-point advantage over fifth-placed Real Sociedad and look capable of challenging for a top-four spot this season.

The Green and Whites, who finished sixth in La Liga last season, have won their last four league matches against Elche, Levante, Barcelona and Real Sociedad, beating the latter 4-0 last weekend.

Real Betis also managed to progress in the Copa del Rey on Thursday night, recording a 4-2 victory at Talavera, which made it seven wins from their last eight matches in all competitions.

El Glorioso also managed to finish second in their Europa League group behind Bayer Leverkusen, and the Spanish outfit have been drawn against Zenit St Petersburg in the next round.

Athletic Bilbao La Liga form:
  • L
  • D
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • L

Real Betis La Liga form:
  • L
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Real Betis form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • W



Team News

Real Betis' Cristian Tello celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on November 25, 2021© Reuters

Athletic will again be missing Peru Nolaskoain, Yuri Berchiche and Asier Villalibre through injury, while Dani Vivian is unlikely to feature for the home side.

The Basque club will also be missing Dani Garcia due to the booking that the midfielder picked up against Sevilla, so there could be a spot in the middle of the park for Oier Zarraga, while Unai Simon and Inigo Martinez have tested positive for coronavirus and will therefore miss out.

Nico Williams and Raul Garcia should keep their attacking spots, while Inaki Williams and Iker Muniain are certainties to feature in the final third of the field.

As for Real Betis, Youssouf Sabaly and Paul Akouokou will miss the contest through injury, while Claudio Bravo and Victor Camarasa are doubts for the visitors.

As expected, Pellegrini rung the changes for Thursday's Copa del Rey contest, but the likes of Sergio Canales, Juanmi, Willian Jose, Victor Ruiz and Andres Guardado will be back in the side here.

Alex Moreno scored twice from left-back against Real Sociedad last weekend, and the Spaniard will again be in the starting team, while Nabil Fekir will also retain his spot in attack.

Athletic Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Agirrezabala; Lekue, Alvarez, Nunez, Balenziaga; N Williams, Vencedor, Zarraga, Muniain; I Williams, R Garcia

Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Silva; Bellerin, Bartra, Ruiz, Moreno; Rodriguez, Guardado; Fekir, Canales, Juanmi; Willian Jose


SM words green background

We say: Athletic Bilbao 1-1 Real Betis

Real Betis are a team to be taken extremely seriously this season, and it will be fascinating to see whether they are capable of claiming a top-four spot. Pellegrini's side will be searching for their 11th league win of the season this weekend, but we are expecting draw specialists Athletic to hold the visitors here.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data



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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Real Betis win with a probability of 42.1%. A win for Athletic Bilbao had a probability of 32.13% and a draw had a probability of 25.8%.

The most likely scoreline for a Real Betis win was 0-1 with a probability of 9.94%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.85%) and 0-2 (7.19%). The likeliest Athletic Bilbao win was 1-0 (8.45%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.23%). The actual scoreline of 3-2 was predicted with a 2.2% likelihood.


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Game History

How you voted: Athletic Bilbao vs Real Betis

Athletic Bilbao
22.9%
Draw
22.0%
Real Betis
55.1%
118
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rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona13110240122833
2Real Madrid1283125111427
3Atletico MadridAtletico137511971226
4Villarreal127322319424
5Osasuna136341720-321
6Athletic Bilbao135531913620
7Real BetisBetis135531412220
8Real Sociedad135351110118
9Mallorca135351010018
10GironaGirona135351617-118
11Celta Vigo135262022-217
12Rayo Vallecano124441313016
13Sevilla134361218-615
14Leganes133551316-314
15AlavesAlaves134181422-813
16Las PalmasLas Palmas133371622-612
17Getafe13175811-310
18Espanyol123181122-1110
19Real ValladolidValladolid132381025-159
20Valencia11146817-97


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