Real Madrid are looking to get back to winning ways in LaLiga after two consecutive draws, they meet Athletic Bilbao at Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday. Last season Real Madrid defeated Athletic 3-0 in this fixture after having recorded a 1-1 draw in Bilbao. Real Madrid have won three of the last six direct matches, and the other three were draws. Athletic Bilbao have rarely managed to win at Santiago Bernabeu, the last time that happened was back in 2005.
Real Madrid had a pair of very tough fixtures in the past seven days, first they snatched a 1-1 draw at Valencia thanks to a stoppage-time goal from Karim Benzema and then grabbed a goalless draw at Camp Nou in the "Clasico" derby against league leaders Barcelona. That result left Barca and Real tied on 36 points at the top of the table. Real Madrid are unbeaten in their last twelve matches in all competitions and they are still undefeated at home since the start of the season. Casemiro is suspended for this match, while Marco Asensio, Lucas Vazquez, Eden Hazard and Marcelo are injured.
Athletic Bilbao are having a solid season so far, they are in seventh place after seventeen matches and seem capable of fighting for a place in the top six. Last week they got held to a goalless draw at home by Eibar, while this week they had an easy 3-0 win at CF Intercity in the Spanish Cup. However, they have only won one of their eight away matches in LaLiga this season. Ander Capa is suspended for the visitors, while Iker Muniain and Oscar de Marcos are out injured.
Probable line-ups:
Real Madrid: Courtois - Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Mendy - Kroos, Modric, Valverde - Rodrygo, Benzema, Bale
Athletic Bilbao: Simon - Lekue, Martinez, Alvarez, Yuri - Lopez, D. Garcia - Williams, Sancet, Cordoba - R. Garcia
My prediction:
Fagigue might be a factor for Real Madrid after having played two intense matches during the past week, but their superior quality should prevail. I think Real Madrid will win this match 2-1.
Here are the odds for the match at NetBet:
Real win - 1.34
Draw - 5.25
Bilbao win - 8.50
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