Both Athletic Bilbao and Real Betis will be looking to bounce back from defeats before the international break when they continue their respective La Liga campaigns with a clash on Monday night.
Athletic are currently 14th in the table, having collected nine points from their eight matches this season, while Betis occupy seventh, picking up 12 points from their nine fixtures at the start of 2020-21.
Match preview
© Reuters
Inconsistency has been a real issue for Athletic this season, with the Basque outfit winning three but losing five of their opening eight La Liga matches to sit down in 14th position in the table.
Gaizka Garitano's side have actually won two of their last four in the league, including an impressive 2-1 victory over Sevilla at the end of October, but they suffered a 2-1 defeat to struggling Real Valladolid in their last fixture before the international break.
The fact that Athletic have won their last two home league fixtures will hand them confidence ahead of this match, but it does appear that it could be another testing campaign for the club.
Los Leones finished fourth in La Liga in 2013-14 and did not drop outside of the top seven for the next three campaigns; they ended the 2017-18 season down in 16th, though, before claiming eighth and then 11th last term as the Basque side again struggled for a consistent run of results.
© Reuters
Betis, meanwhile, have won four and lost five of their opening nine league matches of the season to sit seventh in the table, only four points off fourth-placed Real Madrid.
The Green and Whites have been an entertaining team to watch this season, picking up some impressive results in the process, but they have lost three of their last four in Spain's top flight.
A 3-1 home win over Elche at the start of the month was followed by a 5-2 loss at Barcelona before the international break, and Manuel Pellegrini's side will be determined to return to winning ways on Monday.
The Seville-based outfit will certainly be looking to improve on last season's 15th-placed finish, although it is difficult to imagine them repeating their success in 2017-18, which saw them claim sixth.
Betis have only won one of their last seven La Liga matches with Athletic, meanwhile, and suffered a 1-0 defeat in the corresponding match during the 2019-20 campaign.
Athletic Bilbao La Liga form: LLWLWL
Real Betis La Liga form: LWLLWL
Team News
© Reuters
Athletic will be without Jokin Ezkieta due to a positive coronavirus test, but the home side are otherwise in good shape heading into Monday's contest.
Garitano is expected to make changes from the side that started against Valladolid last time out, with Alex Berenguer and Mikel Vesga pushing for spots in the starting XI.
Oscar de Marcos and Ibai Gomez could also be involved after overcoming recent injuries, although Inaki Williams and Iker Muniain should keep their spots in the final third of the field.
As for Betis, Aissa Mandi is suspended due to the red card that he picked up against Barca last time out, while Sergio Canales, Nabil Fekir, Juanmi, Dani Martin and Victor Camarasa are all on the treatment table.
Antonio Sanabria was on the scoresheet against Camp Nou and should keep his spot in the final third of the field, while Cristian Tello and Joaquin are also expected to retain their positions.
Aitor Ruibal and Victor Ruiz could both come into the starting XI, though, with Pellegrini expected to make at least a couple of changes from the loss to Ronald Koeman's side.
Athletic Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Simon; Capa, Martinez, Alvarez, Berchiche; Vesga, D Garcia; Berenguer, Muniain, Williams; R Garcia
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Bravo; Moreno, Bartra, Ruiz, Emerson; Rodriguez, Carvalho; Ruibal, Joaquin, Tello; Sanabria
We say: Athletic Bilbao 1-1 Real Betis
It is difficult to know what to expect from both of these teams on a game-to-game basis, and it would not be a surprise to see any of the three results occur on Monday night. There is not an awful lot between the two sides in terms of quality, though, and we have therefore predicted a low-scoring draw at San Mames.
