2 weeks ago
12
Who: Athletic Bilbao vs Real Madrid
What: Spain’s La Liga
Where: The San Mames Stadium, Bilbao, Spain
When: Wednesday astatine 7pm (18:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll person each the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 15:00 GMT successful beforehand of our unrecorded substance commentary stream.
Real Madrid are looking to get their rubric complaint backmost connected way against Athletic Bilbao aft a bid of draws enabled rivals Barcelona to gain rod position successful La Liga.
Recommended Stories
list of 4 items- list 1 of 4Barca and Atletico look to boost rubric chances amid Real Madrid blip
- list 2 of 4Flamengo bushed Palmeiras to triumph Copa Libertadores title
- list 3 of 4All you request to cognize astir FIFA Arab Cup 2025
- list 4 of 4Iran to boycott FIFA 2026 World Cup gully successful US implicit visa dispute
Madrid were held to a 3rd consecutive La Liga gully astatine lowly Girona connected Sunday, wherever they were forced to combat backmost from a extremity down.
Athletic Bilbao, who are eighth successful the part with 20 points from their opening 14 games, sealed a 2-0 triumph astatine Levante connected Saturday with goals from Robert Navarro and Nico Williams.
Pressures grows connected Real Madrid manager Alonso
The gully with Girona increases the unit connected Real manager Xabi Alonso, with caller rumours suggesting his aboriginal is successful uncertainty successful the Madrid dugout.
“We are up there, it’s each precise even, it’s a agelong play and we person to continue,” Alonso told reporters aft the game.
“I liked the absorption from the players. It was not capable to crook it around, but we were close, and we person to proceed with the unity we have, being self-critical enough, and wanting to triumph distant from home.”
Madrid question to Bilbao connected Wednesday for a 4th consecutive league lucifer connected the road, a crippled moved due to the fact that of the club’s information successful the Spanish Super Cup successful January.
“The array volition beryllium hard-fought, determination volition beryllium tons of movement,” Alonso added.
Madrid manager Xabi Alonso took implicit from Carlo Ancelotti successful the summertime [Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP]‘We request to alteration this dynamic’
Madrid’s superstar striker Kylian Mbappe had a extremity ruled retired for handball moments earlier Morocco planetary Azzedine Ounahi fired Girona up connected Sunday, rifling location from conscionable wrong the country to stun the illustrious visitors.
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois past made a stunning prevention to extremity distant Vladyslav Vanat’s thrust crossed extremity earlier Los Blancos fought back.
After having a extremity disallowed for offside, Vinicius Jr was clumsily felled successful the container by Hugo Rincon.
Mbappe smashed the resulting punishment into the bottommost near country past Paulo Gazzaniga’s dive for his 14th La Liga extremity of the campaign.
“Absolutely not the effect we wanted, but the league is inactive connected and precise long,” Mbappe wrote connected societal media. “We request to alteration this dynamic and amusement who we are arsenic a team.”
Kylian Mbappe of Real Madrid celebrates scoring the equaliser against Girona [Josep Lago/AFP]Bilbao get morale boost with triumph implicit Levante
Manager Ernesto Valverde admitted that Athletic’s triumph implicit Levante gave his broadside a much-needed morale boost aft a fig of depressing defeats successful caller weeks.
“This lucifer was precise important for america successful galore ways, some from a morale standpoint, and supra all, to get our assurance aft immoderate little than affirmative results,” Valverde said pursuing the match.
Valverde, however, cautioned that “now we person a hard and precise breathtaking week up of america with pugnacious opponents coming to San Mames”, adding that “we person to instrumentality each crippled arsenic it comes and combat for the win”.
Williams says nine and metropolis ‘mean everything to me’ amid transportation rumours
The Athletic winger spoke successful an interrogation with GQ Hype astir his heavy attachment to his boyhood nine and the metropolis of Bilbao, aft being again linked with a determination to Barcelona contempt him extending his contract until 2035.
“Athletic and Bilbao mean everything to maine … I’ve grown present arsenic a idiosyncratic and arsenic a player,” Nico Williams said.
“Representing this nine and this metropolis has made maine recognize the worth of hard work, humility, and family. We each cognize that Athletic is unsocial successful the world, arsenic the motto says.”
He added: “Here successful Bilbao, I person my household and loved ones with whom I marque each decision. Playing alongside my member successful the Champions League is simply a imagination travel true.”
Athletic’s Nico Williams, left, successful enactment with Jeremy Toljan of Levante [Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images]Head-to-head
The 2 clubs person faced each different connected 248 occasions, with Real Madrid winning 124, Athletic Club winning 79, and 45 games ending arsenic draws.
Athletic won their astir caller gathering with Los Blancos astatine location 2-1 with Alex Berenguer and Gorka Guruzeta scoring.
That was Athletic’s archetypal La Liga triumph implicit Real Madrid since a 1-0 triumph successful March 2015 arsenic Los Blancos person usually dominated caller fixtures.
Athletic Bilbao’s squad news
Athletic volition beryllium boosted by the instrumentality of midfielder Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta from suspension, though Oihan Sancet remains suspended.
Benat Prados, Unai Egiluz, Maroan Sannadi and Robert Navarro person each been ruled retired with injuries, and Inaki Williams remains a large uncertainty aft missing Athletic’s past 7 games with a groin issue.
Defender Aymeric Laporte missed the Levante crippled done illness, but is expected to instrumentality against Madrid.
Athletic Bilbao’s predicted starting XI
Simon; Gorosabel, Laporte, Vivian, Berchiche; Ruiz de Galarreta, Jauregizar; Berenguer, Sanchez, Nico Williams; Gomez
Real Madrid’s squad news
Madrid’s wounded issues are centred astir the defence astatine the moment.
Centre-back Dean Huijsen is simply a large uncertainty aft missing the past 2 games with a muscular problem, portion David Alaba is besides improbable to diagnostic arsenic helium recovers from his ain muscular injury.
Dani Carvajal volition beryllium sidelined until 2026 aft undergoing an cognition connected a genu problem.
But portion centre-back Raul Asencio missed the crippled against Girona owed to illness, helium is expected to retrieve successful clip for the Bilbao game.
Real Madrid’s predicted starting XI
Courtois; Alexander-Arnold, Militao, Rudiger, Carreras; Camavinga, Valverde, Tchouameni; Bellingham; Mbappe, Vinicius Jr
English (US) ·