Athletic Bilbao vs Sevilla

April 26, 2014
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Having failed to hold on to a one-goal lead at Camp Nou, Athletic Bilbao cannot afford to lose to Sevilla or else their Champions League qualification will be in serious danger. Meanwhile, los Rojiblancos would climb to by winning at the New San Mames and that should be enough incentive for the visitors to give their best in this match.

Brave performance at Camp Nou

The mere fact Athletic Bilbao are still in the driving seat for the final Champions League berth speaks volumes about the work Ernesto Valverde and his players have put in this season. Their brand of attacking, in-your-face football has won them quite a few admirers among the neutrals, but also produced some stunning results in the process. The team have shown a great deal of consistency this season, even if that was never their biggest trait, but they still have some important games to negotiate before they can celebrate Champions League qualification. Despite producing a very good performance at Camp Nou and even taking the lead, Athletic eventually had to settle for a 2-1 defeat, meaning they now sit mere three points ahead of Sevilla in the standings. And even though a draw at the New San Mames would leave them in a good position to achieve a top 4 finish, chances are Ernesto Valverde will instruct his side to attack from the off, as that is the only approach they are using when playing at home, regardless of the opponents and the situation at the time. And with their 17 home fixtures producing no less than 54 goals, another high-scoring match looks on the cards.

Ernesto Valverde has no fresh injury worries seeing as how Iker Muniain, Aritz Aduriz and Mikel Balenziaga have shaken off minor knocks.

Sevilla in dreamland

Chances are not even the most optimistic of fans could have predicted such a successful season after seeing a host of first team regulars leave in the summer. Nevertheless, some amazing displays in the second part of the campaign saw Sevilla soar to unimagined heights and they are now in a position to produce two major feats. Having defeated Valencia 2-0 in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final, los Rojiblancos are on the verge of qualifying for the final, while they are still in the race for a top 4 finish in La Liga. The 4-0 triumph over Granada saw Unai Emery’s side close the gap behind their next opponents to three points and with the reverse fixture at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan ending all squared, Sevilla are aware they would climb to fourth if they can win at the New San Mames. That will be no easy task given Athletic’s impressive home form, but a five-match winning run in all competitions should keep los Rojiblancos in good stead for the match in Bilbao.

Unai Emery will have full-back Alberto Moreno back from injury, meaning Sebastian Cristoforo and Denis Cheryshev are the only unavailable players at the moment.

Verdict

Even if the stakes are extremely high, both sides can be trusted to adopt an attacking approach, meaning we could easily see goals galore at the New San Mames. Taking Athletic’s excellent home form into account, los Leones do look closer to victory, but there is a good possibility of the teams cancelling each other out.

Top pick: Both teams to score   1.63 (5/8) @ Unibet

Alternative pick 1: Over 2.5 goals   1.73 (8/11) @ Stan James

Alternative pick 2: Draw   3.70 (27/10) @ BetVictor

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