Barcelona go try make am three straight La Liga wins when dem travel go face Athletic Bilbao for San Mames this Saturday evening.
Hansi Flick side dey top the table with four points ahead of second-place Real Madrid, while Athletic Bilbao dey ninth and five points behind sixth-place Celta Vigo.
Match Preview
Athletic Bilbao dey come into this match after dem lose 1-0 to Real Sociedad for the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final. The result mean say the Lions crash out of the competition after 2-0 aggregate defeat.
Now the team wey Ernesto Valverde dey manage get only La Liga to focus on for the rest of the season. Despite the cup disappointment, Athletic form for the league dey solid. Dem don collect 10 points from their last four matches, beating Levante, Real Oviedo and Elche before drawing with Rayo Vallecano.
The Basque club currently dey ninth for the table. Dem still dey five points behind Celta Vigo for European places, but dem dey 16 points away from top four, meaning Champions League football next season go hard to achieve.
Athletic don collect 23 points from 13 home league matches this season, but dem go face serious challenge against Barcelona wey get one of the best away records for La Liga.
History also no dey favour Athletic. Dem don lose their last five matches against Barcelona across all competitions, including heavy 5-0 defeat for the Spanish Super Cup semi-final in January 2026.
Barcelona never lose to Athletic since their 4-2 defeat for Copa del Rey quarter-final in January 2024. For La Liga, the Catalan giants never lose to the Lions since August 2019.
Barcelona also play Copa del Rey during the week. Dem beat Atletico Madrid 3-0 for the second leg, but the result no enough after dem lose the first leg 4-0.
For the league, Flick side bounce back well after their 2-1 defeat to Girona. Dem don win their last two matches against Villarreal and Levante.
Barcelona dey top La Liga with 21 wins from 26 matches, and dem attack don still dey deadly this season with 71 goals scored.
Team News
Athletic Bilbao still go miss Yeray Alvarez (suspension), Nico Williams (groin injury), Benat Prados (knee), Unai Egiluz (knee) and Maroan Sannadi (knee).
However, Valverde squad no get any fresh injury problems after their match with Real Sociedad.
Inaki Williams, Oihan Sancet and Alex Berenguer go likely support striker Gorka Guruzeta for attack.
For Barcelona, Robert Lewandowski don return to training after eye socket fracture and he fit appear for the squad.
But Andreas Christensen, Jules Kounde, Alejandro Balde, Frenkie de Jong and Gavi still dey injured.
Because of the injuries, Joao Cancelo and Gerard Martin fit start as full-backs.
Young midfielder Marc Bernal don impress recently and the 18-year-old fit start again alongside Pedri for midfield.
Possible Starting Lineups
Athletic Bilbao:
Simon; Vivian, Paredes, Laporte, Boiro; Rego, Ruiz de Galarreta; I Williams, Sancet, Berenguer; Guruzeta
Barcelona:
J Garcia; Cancelo, Cubarsi, E Garcia, Martin; Bernal, Pedri; Yamal, Fermin, Raphinha; F Torres
Prediction
Athletic Bilbao dey enjoy strong form recently and San Mames no easy place to play. But Barcelona attacking quality and title momentum fit give dem the edge.
Prediction: Athletic Bilbao 1-2 Barcelona.
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