Match Overview:

Athletic Bilbao will look to continue their impressive run of form as they welcome Sevilla to San Mamés on the 29th of September, 2024, at 19:45. They are looking to secure a fourth straight victory in La Liga, having impressed with a draw against AS Roma in the Europa League. The return of Nico Williams should boost the hosts’ team morale, while Guruzeta and López are both sidelined with injuries. They surrender an average of 8.78 shots per home match. Although the visitors indeed won their previous match, away-day blues have hampered their progress in recent weeks. Marcao is serving a ban, while several other players are struggling with injuries – home win.

Match Detail:

• Date: September 29, 2024
• Time: 07:45 (local time)
• Venue: San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao

Pitch Report:

San Mamés generally provides a well-balanced pitch. The surface allows football to be played at a quick pace, favouring the styles of both teams. However, the fact that the ground is the home venue to Athletic Bilbao might give them a slight advantage over their opponents.

Points Table:

Team A (Athletic Bilbao) Analysis:

Key Player: Inaki Williams- Williams has been the most influential player with a considerable amount of the team’s attacking play going through him. He has the ability, experience and talent to disrupt the Real Madrid defence and cause them a host of problems.

Probable Playing XI:

1. Unai Simón (GK)
2. Oscar De Marcos
3. Dani Vivian
4. Yeray Álvarez
5. Yuri Berchiche
6. Iker Muniain (C)
7. Oihan Sancet
8. Mikel Vesga
9. Nico Williams
10. Inaki Williams
11. Gorka Guruzeta

Team B (Sevilla) Analysis:

Key Player: Ivan Rakitić- He will be instrumental for Sevilla as a creative attacking midfielder who will be responsible for the distribution, vision, and leadership, which is especially vital in the absence of the other leading players who are injured.

Probable Playing XI:

1. Orjan Nyland (GK)
2. Jesús Navas
3. Loïc Badé
4. Federico Gattoni
5. Marcos Acuña
6. Ivan Rakitić (C)
7. Suso
8. Lucas Ocampos
9. Youssef En-Nesyri
10. Erik Lamela
11. Adnan Januzaj

Head-to-Head Record:

• Total Matches: 46
• Athletic Bilbao Wins: 17
• Sevilla Wins: 21
• Draws: 8

Dream11 Picks:

• Captain: Inaki Williams
• Vice-Captain: Ivan Rakitić
• Top Picks: Oihan Sancet, Nico Williams, Youssef En-Nesyri, Suso

Public Opinion:

As this clash begins, public opinion believes that Athletic Bilbao is the stronger team. The fact that the home-ground clash is at San Mamés comes as a factor that has influenced the views. The decision is also influenced by the reintroduction of Nico Williams. The Lions have been enjoying a good run, recording three consecutive victories in La Liga, and could take advantage of Sevilla’s awful away form. Doubts have also been raised by the injuries of Pepelu and Aleix Vidal and Marcao’s suspension. Sevilla is a very strong side, but Bilbao will take the three points at home.

SWOT Analysis:

Athletic Bilbao:

• Strengths: Athletic Bilbao has been doing great in the recent games. The team won three last games in La Liga and expects to have a big support on the home stadium. Nico Williams’ recovery should make the team more powerful and ambitious. The pace and creativity of Inaki are the crucial points of pressure for the opponents, and their strong midfielder presence, and the feeling of the team, make it wholly balanced for rapid transitions and defence.
• Weaknesses: Sometimes the team concentrates on the best players and does not show perfect defence when Inaki Williams or Nico does not depend on their playing ability.
• Opportunities: Sevilla has been a weak guest lately, and many players including key supernova attackers are hurt. Thus, it is the best opportunity for Athletic Bilbao to get three points and improve their tournament position.
• Threats: Sevilla is good at playing big games and doing the best from set-pieces, while Bilbao might be in danger of defending corners and free kicks from Rakitić.

Sevilla:

• Strengths: The strengths of Sevilla mainly revolve around their amount of experience. With notable veterans such as Ivan Rakitić and Jesús Navas, Sevilla would be able to handle the pressure. Despite their recent struggles, Sevilla has shown that they are relatively effective on the counter-attack. Their morale and audacity should also be high after the recent 3-1 victory over Real Valladolid. It is believed that their players tend to perform under high-pressure matches and high-stakes environments.
• Weaknesses: Experience aside, Sevilla has tentatively weak away form this season. The number of injuries would most likely affect their defensive stability as Saul Niguez, Djibril Sow, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Marcao had already been ruled out. Their prior poor away form and recent injury list would only put the away team at a disadvantage against Bilbao.
• Opportunities: It is believed that Sevilla would only be able to capitalize on set-pieces and catch Bilbao on the counter-attack. Rakitić’s vision and experience would undoubtedly assist Sevilla on this occasion.
• Threats: Unfortunately for the away side, Bilbao has had solid attacking form this season. In addition to this, the San Mamés crowd would make it relatively tough for Sevilla to control the game. With such a depleted squad, I think the away team would struggle from the pace of Bilbao.

Prediction:

Athletic Bilbao has good chances to win against Sevilla. First of all, the team has benefited from its excellent recent form and the home-field factor. The hosts have won three La Liga games in a row until their victory in the previous Champions League clash, and the return of winger Nico Williams will add more attacking power. The visitors, in turn, struggle on the road and have personnel issues, including the suspension of the defenders Marcao and several other injured players. It is believed that despite the important win over Real Valladolid the visitors have no chance to take three points or even one, as their defence is very unstable, and they cannot play away with due consistency. A 2-1 win for Athletic Bilbao is the most probable result, and Inaki Williams will be the player of the match.