La Liga: Atleti Host Bilbao in Crunch Match at the Metropolitano

Atletico Madrid vs Athletic Bilbao

The race for the final top four spot in the La Liga table is heating up, as Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao kept on going back and forth with each other in these past few weeks.

Only three points separate these two sides, with Atletico Madrid having the edge over Athletic Bilbao because they’ve been in better form recently.

If it weren’t for their shocking 2-0 defeat against Alaves on Monday, Diego Simeone’s side would’ve had a bigger lead over Los Leones.

On the other hand, Athletic Bilbao are winless in their last three league games, and Saturday is the perfect time for them to return to winning ways.

Based on the title of this article, this is one of the matches that SBOTOP football fans should watch with great interest this weekend.

Talking Points

Morata expected to return for Atletico Madrid

One of the key reasons why Atletico Madrid lost to Alaves last time out is because they were a bit shorthanded, with both Alvaro Morata and Marcos Llorente unavailable.

Morata is the joint top scorer alongside Antoine Griezmann with 19 goals this season, while Llorente, one of the team’s most versatile players, has recorded six goals and four assists.

Alvaro Morata was out because he was sick, but he’s supposed to be back this weekend, especially after he was seen training with the squad lately. On the other hand, Llorente will be out for a few more games because he will have to serve his suspension for an accumulation of yellow cards.

Morata’s return means that Angel Correa will likely go back to the bench, while Pablo Barrios is in contention for another start with Llorente sidelined.

Meanwhile, Memphis Depay remains out due to an ongoing muscular injury, and it’s looking likely that he might have played his last game in an Atleti uniform since he will be out of contract this summer.

Athletic Bilbao will do it for Muniain

Iker Muniain announced that he is leaving Athletic Bilbao at the end of the season. The 31-year-old winger has been with Los Leones for 15 seasons, so he will look to make his final few weeks count at San Mames, and what better way to do so than to secure their return to the Champions League?

Athletic Bilbao must get over their Copa del Rey hangover, as they were held to back-to-back 1-1 draws by teams that are below them at the table in Villarreal and Granada, although they’ll have an easier schedule after this game against Atletico Madrid.

Like Los Rojiblancos, Los Leones have a lot of weapons in the form of the Williams brothers, Gorka Guruzeta, Alex Berenguer, Oihan Sancet, and yes, even Muniain, despite being relegated as a rotation player this season.

Oihan Sancet has found the back of the net in their last two matches to take his total to four goals and five assists this season, making him a marked man on Atleti’s backline.

History

Athletic Bilbao and Atletico Madrid have already faced off three times this season, with the former winning all three games with an aggregate tally of 6-0.

Los Leones won 2-0 in their first league meeting last December, as Gorka Guruzeta and Nico Williams made the net bulge. And then they eliminated Los Rojiblancos in the Copa del Rey semi-finals, as Alex Berenguer, Inaki Williams, Nico Williams, and Gorka Guruzeta all scored.

Ernesto Valverde’s side eventually won the Copa del Rey, their first in four decades, winning against Mallorca in the final via penalties.

Should Athletic Bilbao win again on Saturday, it would be their first league double over Atletico Madrid since the 1999-00 campaign, where they won 4-2 away and 2-1 at home.

Betting Tip

However, the updated La Liga 2024 odds are in favour of Los Rojiblancos winning this weekend, despite their poor showing against Los Leones in recent encounters. Atletico Madrid are pegged at 2.02 odds, whereas Athletic Bilbao are at 3.43, and a draw is at 3.18 in the 1X2 market.

Just like in their most recent encounter, football fans can expect La Liga 2024 highlights from this Saturday’s fixture, making alternative bets like Over 2.75 at 2.29, Over 2.50 at 2.01, Total Goals 2-3 at 1.90, and even Total Goals 4-6 at 3.48 viable.

However, if you disagree with our recommended bets above, then check out Correct Scores of 3-0 and 1-0 both in favour of the visitors, and the exact results of their previous matchups, given their generous payouts of 65.00 and 10.00, respectively.

 

●●●

CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FOOTBALL STORIES & ODDS

Stay updated with everything sports and betting.

Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.