The pick of the round in Spanish La Liga will see top 4 hopefuls Athletic Club take on surprise leaders Atletico Madrid at the New San Mames.

And with both sides in desperate need of points at the moment, chances are we will see plenty of fireworks on Saturday evening.

With just eight games to go, Athletic Bilbao occupy the final Champions League berth and hold a six-point advantage over fifth-placed Sevilla, so no doubt they are in a great position to secure a top 4 berth.

However, with Real Sociedad, Villarreal and los Rojiblancos also in the chase, every point could prove important in the final count.

Athletic have had some problems of late, having won just one of last four league matches, although they remain unbeaten in last six.

Nevertheless, Ernesto Valverde’s men will have to show improvement if they want to defeat high-flying Atletico, even if odds of 3.10 (21/10) offered on home win would suggest they stand a decent chance.

The absence of key midfielder Ander Herrera, who misses out with suspension, is likely to prove a major issue, with Benat Etxeberria finally expected to be given a chance to shine.

Carlos Gurpegui is set to undergo an arthroscopic surgery on his knee, whilst Kike Sola, Borja Ekiza and Ibai Gomez remain on the sidelines.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Iraizoz – Iraola, San Jose, Laporte, Balenziaga – Iturraspe, Mikel Rico – Susaeta, Benat, Muniain – Aduriz.

The dream continues for Atletico Madrid and La Liga table does make pretty reading for los Colchoneros fans at the moment.

The four-match winning run in the league saw Diego Simeone’s side took great advantage of their rivals’ slip ups and with eight games to go they sit at the top of the standings, one and three points clear of Barca and Real respectively.

Atletico are also set to battle the Catalans for a place in the Champions League semi-finals, but the game at the New San Mames obviously has the priority at the moment.

Los Colchoneros have seriously raised their form of late, winning four straight league matches without conceding a single goal, and they are 4.00 (3/1) to defeat Bilbao to nil as well.

Following a hard-fought victory over Granada, Atletico face a much tougher task in Basque country, but they are 2.45 (29/20) to emerge victorious.

Filipe Luis returns from suspension, whereas Javi Manquillo has resumed training, but he is not yet available for selection.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Courtois – Juanfran, Miranda, Godin, Filipe Luis – Koke, Mario, Gabi, Turan – Costa, Garcia.