Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction - La Liga

The European spots are still up for grabs in La Liga and our expert Nathan Joyes has provided his Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Best Bet, team news, lineups and fixtures preview.

Villarreal sit six points behind Athletic Bilbao but do have a game in hand to close the gap to just three – and so a win here will keep their Champions League aspirations alive. A narrow 2-1 win on the road against Getafe last weekend stopped the recent run of defeats.

Athletic Bilbao are enjoying a four match unbeaten run in La Liga, but head into this contest on the back of a disappointing 0-0 draw against Osasuna. Can they rally to beat Villarreal once again this season? Nathan has his say.

Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction: High stakes match at de la Ceramica

Spain, La Liga, Sunday, April 6th, 20:00 (UK)

Away from La Liga’s title race, there’s an intriguing battle for Champions League football next season. Athletic Bilbao have been sat in 4th spot almost the entire campaign, but Villarreal are continuing to bridge the gap as we enter the final 9/10 games.

Both teams arrive in decent form. Villarreal have picked up seven points from a possible 15, which included a narrow 2-1 defeat against Real Madrid despite taking the lead. At home, they’ve not shone quite as brightly as they have on the road, picking up 20 points from a possible 39 – and this might be where Bilbao will look to punish them.

After 14 matches, Bilbao have the 5th best away form, collecting 23 points from 14 matches. They head into this clash having picked up eight points from a possible 15, scoring nine goals within those matches.

However, looking closer at those goals, seven were scored at home to almost relegated Valladolid, who have failed to win away in 15 attempts. Two goals in four matches is slightly worrying heading into the back end of the season.

Yet this may be a small blip. Of their last 10 away matches, they’ve only failed to score away to Atletico Madrid – a side that has the second best home form and has conceded just 12 goals in 15 matches. Bilbao’s pacey Williams brothers offer the perfect counter when home teams decide to ramp up the pressure.

And we’ve often seen Villarreal frustrated at home this campaign against sides in the top half of the table. They’ve only won four of their last 10 at de la Ceramica – and two were against Valladolid and Las Palmas.

So, how is this game going to play out?

With just two clean sheets at home across all competitions, Villarreal can’t seem to find their tune in front of their fans. When teams sit back, they struggle. As the crowd gets agitated, away teams have taken advantage and either countered or applied more pressure – and it has worked.

But at the same time, Villarreal have scored in every home match this season – that hasn’t been an issue. Ayoze Perez has 12 league goals to his name, and scored last time out against Getafe.

With so much at stake, one could argue this game isn’t going to produce many key moments. But with Villarreal’s poor defence yet their ability to score, it would be a surprise for either trend to end in this fixture. Both teams have the quality to find the back of the net, and they should do this weekend.

• Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction: BTTS Yes
• Best Odds: 1.72
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 7/10

Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction odds via bet365 as at 15:00, March 31st, 2025. Odds may now differ.

Villarreal vs Athletic Bilbao Injuries, Team News and Possible Lineups

Villarreal will be without Nicolas Pepe who returned from international duty with an injury and sat out of the Getafe win last weekend. Pape Gueye also missed the trip to Getafe with an ankle injury and he’s unlikely to be back in time for this clash against Bilbao.

Bilbao are missing a couple of players themselves, with both Dani Vivian and Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta set to miss this particular clash. Bilbao may look towards their Williams brothers to find the back of the net, as forward Maroan Sannadi hasn’t scored since February (six appearances).

Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Reis; Cardona, Foyth, Kambwala, Navarro, Baena, Comesana, Parejo, Buchanan, Perez, Barry

Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Simon; Berchiche, Alvarez, Nunez, de Marcos, Diaz, Jauregizar, Williams, Berenguer, Williams, Sannadi

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