As there is a Spanish Cup during gameweek 19, we have four teams playing a game this midweek. One is over, and now we have Athletic Club hosting Real Madrid at the Estadio de San Mames. The date for the match is 3rd December. Basically, the local kick-off time is 7 PM, whereas it is 11:30 PM as per Indian Standard Time. What are your predictions for the Athletic Club vs Real Madrid game?
After Barcelona’s 3-1 win against Atletico Madrid at the Spotify Camp Nou, the pressure is back on Real Madrid now. Now Barcelona leads by four points, and Real Madrid will want to take a win and close the gap to one point. One thing is for sure: Athletic Club is struggling, and they won’t make things easy for Real Madrid. At the same time, Real Madrid has their own problems.
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La Liga: Athletic Club vs Real Madrid Preview and Expected XI
Let us start with the host, Real Madrid. There are a lot of questions that manager Xabi Alonso and his players need to answer. This will surely be a match where the reaction is much needed from the Real Madrid team, as they have dropped points in all of their last three matches. Real Madrid’s last three matches have ended in a draw, and because of this, they have also lost their top spot to Barcelona. Ferland Mendy has a new injury, whereas centre back Dean Huijsen is still not fit. Dani Carvajal is also a miss. The rest squad seems fine.
Athletic Club is one of the top teams in La Liga, but there are a lot of struggles within the team. They are currently in 8th position in La Liga with just six wins in the 14 matches they have played so far. Athletic Club came with a positive result from the last match as they won 2-0 against Levante away from home. Oihan Sancet is suspended for this match, whereas Benat Prados, Unai Egiluz, Maroan Sannadi, and Robert Navarro are all out due to injuries.
Real Madrid XI:
- Goalkeeper: Courtois
- Defenders: Trent, Asencio, Militao, and Carreras
- Midfielders: Camavinga, Valverde, Tchouameni, and Bellingham
- Forwards: Vinicius and Mbappe
Athletic Club XI:
- Goalkeeper: Simon
- Defenders: Gorosabel, Laporte, Vivian, and Berchiche
- Midfielders: Jauregizar, de Galarreta, and Gomez
- Forwards: Berenguer, Nico, and Guruzeta
Athletic Club vs Real Madrid: Winner Predictions
Last year, when both teams met in La Liga, both teams won against each other at their respective homes. Athletic Club won 2-1 at this venue. Guruzeta scored a goal from a Fede Valverde mistake just after Bellingham equalized. When we look at the head-to-head record, Real Madrid have won more, but Athletic Club have caused them problems.
Trent against Nico Williams will be a great battle. With the lack of pressing from Real Madrid players, their opponents will cause a lot of problems early on. Real Madrid have failed to score in the first half for quite a long time now. The pressure will be on Xabi Alonso if he does not get points in this game. Our predictions for this match are that Real Madrid will win.
Scorline Prediction: Athletic Club 1-4 Real Madrid
