Athletic Bilbao v Getafe

Athletic Bilbao play host to Getafe May 5, Saturday. Kick-off is at 20:00 GMT.

Teams News

Athletic Bilbao

Los Leones are still in the running for a top-six finish in the La Liga alongside a Copa del Rey finals match against Barcelona and the Europa League finals match against Atletico Madrid. Should Bilbao win those two competitions, they will arguably be Spain’s most successful side of the year.

At the moment, Bilbao is already the story of the season, with manager Marcelo Bielsa’s tactical panache and leading scorer Fernando Llorente’s scoring touch that has baffled defenses all season long. The only problem for Bilbao is that they are on a back of a two-game skid. A lot of work has to be done if Bilbao wants to be bigger than ever – a reminder that Real Madrid handed on to them via a 3-0 blowout at San Mames in the midweek.

Getafe

Stuck in a congested mid-table, Getafe has the chance to jump into the upper half of the table with a win against Bilbao this weekend – their hopes for Europe however have been quelled via a Santander draw early in the week. In fact a win will help them leapfrog their hosts, possibly taking them to 8th place pending other La Liga results over the weekend.

The Azulones now find themselves on the road once again, after two successive home games in which the only managed to get a point from. With a dismal away record – 4 wins, 4 draws and 10 losses – and against a resolute Bilbao side when playing at home, the chances of earning a point is modest. Like their hosts, a lot of work has to be done if Getafe wants to break into that top 10 La Liga bandwagon.

Athletic Bilbao v Getafe Betting Preview

History favours no one, or so at least when consulted for this game. Four in the last six ended in a draw; each side has won at the expense of the other only once in the last three years respectively. The last time Getafe scored an upset at San Mames dates back to September 2008 however, and following the trend, it’s either a draw or a Bilbao win this weekend.

Betting Tip

Verdict: Athletic Bilbao will be too much for Getafe, 2-0.

Tip: Bilbao won 3-0 in the reverse fixture, a score-line with an odds of 14/1 this weekend. Beyond this punt, there isn’t much spectacle in the books, except of course if you draw down a Bilbao win with different score-lines: 3-1 at 12/1, 3-2 at 22/1. Anything other than these may be too much to ask for statistics.

How about a Getafe upset? 15/4 for a Getafe win pairs well with a 12/1 for a 1-0 scoreline. A 2-0 Getafe win at 22/1 is also tempting, but that would really be stretching the numbers game.

All odds are from Bet365.com (£200 FREE BET!).