Valencia vs Athletic Bilbao

Estadio de Mestalla forms the backdrop for a tasty-looking La Liga encounter between Valencia and Athletic Club.

Valencia’s chances of securing European qualification for next season almost evaporated after a 1-0 midweek defeat at Deportivo Alaves left them three points adrift of eighth-placed Rayo Vallecano. Eager to bounce back from a mistake-riddled showing, Carlos Corberan’s side must take all six points from the last two rounds to maintain their European dream, yet Athletic’s visit doesn’t bode well. A 1-0 defeat in August’s reverse fixture forms part of Valencia’s dreadful record of six losses from seven league matches against top-four opposition. However, Los Che can take heart from their scintillating home form as they’ve won seven of their last nine league outings at Mestalla (D1, L1), including four out of five since the beginning of March (D1) – three of which came ‘to nil.’

Meanwhile, a 2-0 win at Getafe in midweek La Liga action extended Athletic Club’s unbeaten league run to four matches (W3, D1) and, more importantly, sealed their spot in the league phase of next season’s Champions League with two games to spare. However, Ernesto Valverde has set his sights on guiding the Basque giants to their first top-four finish in La Liga since 2013/14, meaning they’ll likely take this trip lightly. Los Leones have been dominant in away matches against La Liga teams currently behind them in the standings, suffering just one defeat in 15 such fixtures (W7, D7). Defensively robust, they’ve racked up an eye-catching seven clean sheets across their last nine league games across all venues.