Athletic Bilbao hosts Betis in round 18 of Spanish LaLiga. The match will be played on Sunday, December 19th at Estadio San Mamés (Bilbao)
Athletic Bilbao did not win again a week ago. Moreover, Marcelino's charges could not earn even one point. Let me remind you that they lost to Sevilla at home with a score of 0-1. As a result, the winless streak continued, and now it amounts to eight matches (five draws and three defeats). Until recently, the Basques were located in the immediate vicinity of the European competition zone. But they have already dropped to 11th place. After 17 matches, Athletic Bilbao has 21 points. In the current season, the club is showing extremely cautious football (13 goals scored and 12 conceded). The team plays in a very boring manner, relying on deep defense. As a result, 14 matches ended with Under 2.5 goals scored.
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Betis is currently ranked third in the Spanish LaLiga standings. The Green-Whites have earned 33 points in 17 matches. Atletico Madrid, which is in fourth place, is lagging behind Betis by four points. Manuel Pellegrini's charges are in great shape now. In the previous four rounds, they gained four victories. In addition, the Andalusians scored 11 goals and conceded only once during that period. Betis is the second most productive team in Spain. It scored 30 goals in the current LaLiga draw. Only Real Madrid has a higher indicator (39 goals). In addition, Betis is the second team in terms of the number of points earned away (16 in eight matches). Again, only the Whites scored more on foreign pitches (22 in nine games).
In the last LaLiga draw, Athletic Bilbao confidently coped with Betis at San Mamés (4-0). Moreover, seven last head-to-head confrontations at this stadium (in the championship) ended with victories for the Lions. Despite a certain crisis, Athletic Bilbao manages to show a quite good level of football on its native pitch. I am sure that now Marcelino's wards will not give points without a fight. Moreover, they have successfully played at home against Betis. I expect the most defensive football from the hosts. Of course, their main task will be not to concede. But the visitors look quite confident at foreign stadiums, and they will probably manage to gain at least a draw.
Prediction for the match: Betis to win with +0.5 handicap
