Real Madrid vs Ath Bilbao prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2025-04-19 19:00.
[p]It’s been a significant week at Real Madrid for all the wrong reasons, with their emphatic UEFA Champions League exit to Arsenal followed by reports that manager Carlo Ancelotti is expected to leave the club after the Copa del Rey final later this month. It’s easy to see why the club’s hierarchy may feel a change is needed, as not only have they fallen short in Europe’s premier competition, but they also trail Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table by four points pre-round.[/p]
[p]Los Blancos can’t afford any more slip ups like the one they suffered here at the BernabĂ©u in the last home league outing against Valencia (L 2-1) if they’re to remain in the title race. Boosting confidence should be a dominant recent home record against Athletic Club, with none of the previous 19 H2Hs here ending in defeat (W16, D3) – their longest such run against them in top-flight history.[/p]
[p]Athletic Club come into this contest on the back of a more successful European outing, booking their place in the Europa League semi-final after seeing off Rangers. They’ll have had less time to prepare for this contest, and fatigue could be a factor as they look to maintain their pre-round six-point buffer inside the top four.[/p]
[p]The Lions should at least travel with confidence as they’re unbeaten in eight matches across all competitions (W4, D4), keeping five clean sheets in the process. Their four La Liga defeats serve as their fewest at this stage of a season in competition history, but room for improvement remains on the road, where they’ve emerged victorious just once in eight competitive trips (D4, L3).[/p]
[p]Players to watch: Only against Sevilla (four) has Real Madrid’s Rodrygo scored more goals than he has against Athletic (three), netting both goals in last season’s corresponding fixture. Oihan Sancet scored Athletic’s 5000th La Liga goal against Rayo Vallecano last week – he’s struck a career-best 15 of them this season alone.[/p]
[p]Hot stat: Athletic manager Ernesto Valverde has lost more La Liga games against Real Madrid than any other opponent (15).[/p]
[p][i]Written by David H[/i][/p]