Match Preview

Entertainment isn’t quite at the top of either of these teams' priority lists, ahead of our Athletic Bilbao vs Alaves preview and football betting odds, with the pair both hovering in and around the relegation battle for the time being.

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Athletic have been dreadful this season, but recently they have been able to strike up a little bit of form at San Mames. They’ve drawn a few games in succession and look tough to beat, but Alaves have similarly improved since the arrival of Abelardo as coach.

Our Athletic Bilbao vs Alaves predictions revolve around Los Leones not wanting to let their fans go home unhappy, which makes backing a hard-fought draw in La Liga predictions very tempting.

Kuko Ziganda’s side are lacking creativity, while Alaves have shown in recent weeks that they are capable of being organised at the back, but similarly a quick and vertical threat when they win possession back.

Athletic Bilbao vs Alaves Prediction and Betting Advice

The home side haven’t seen more than three goals fly in during a La Liga fixture at San Mames since April, with the home fans certainly not getting much in the way of entertainment this season. Even in the Europa League group stages, they managed to be defeated 1-0 by Zorya.

William Hill offer the best value on there being less than three goals in Bilbao, with the hosts in fact failing to score in three of their last four attempts at home in the league. Offensively, they have been dreadful, with no creativity leading to a dearth of clear-cut chances.

Alaves, similarly, have had their goals come in purple patches. They rattled home three in the last 20 minutes versus Girona recently, but otherwise, have found more than one goal tough to muster up. Their changed approach under Abelardo has helped things, but they certainly will never be a free-scoring team.

Our Athletic Bilbao vs Alaves bets back the hosts to make it four consecutive home draws in La Liga, having recently scraped two 0-0 scorelines and one 1-1 against the likes of Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, and Villarreal. While all three are dangerous teams offensively, it takes nothing away from the fact that Athletic’s biggest problem is causing trouble at the other end of the field.

Unibet offer the best value on it ending all square in San Mames, which looks incredibly likely given how both teams are tough to break down and similarly cannot afford to drop points to a fellow rival in the relegation battle. Doing so would be a very irresponsible way to kick off 2018.

Our Athletic Bilbao vs Alaves betting tips suggest that the hosts will be capable of taking a share of the spoils, but against the motivated and organised lines of Alaves, they could have serious issues with poking their noses in front.