Athletic Bilbao-Girona is a match of the 25th day of La Liga and is played Monday at 9 p.m.: odds, predictions, TV and streaming.
Girona’s dream of being able to hold their own against a battleship like Real Madrid until the very end and try to become the “Leicester of Spain” may have vanished a week ago, when Michel’s men were blown away at the “Bernabeu” by Carlo Ancelotti’s Blancos (4-0), all of a sudden coming back down to earth. Some signs of the psychophysical decline had actually been there in the previous match as well, in which the Catalan red-and-whites had failed to get the better of Real Sociedad at “Montilivi,” drawing 0-0 in front of their own public.
However, even getting a Champions placement would be a sensational feat for Girona, a club where the most they could aspire to, so far, was a quiet salvation. Michel’s team closes the 25th day together with Athletic Bilbao with an exciting challenge at the San Mames. The Catalans have an opportunity to shorten again on Real, which was stopped in the derby yesterday by Rayo Vallecano. In the event of a win, Girona would rise to 59, -3 from the now favored Merengues, but more importantly it would keep Barcelona, which now has only three points less than its cousins, at bay.
The San Mames is a fort
It won’t be easy at all, however, to conquer one of the most difficult and hostile pitches in La Liga, where the Basques have barely lost a game, doing worse only than the two Madrid sides.
Ernesto Valverde’s men are marching fast this year and seem to have all the right cards to insert themselves in the fierce fight for fourth place, now five points away. Gap that could have been further reduced if Athletic a week ago had not lost points to tail-end Almeria, which was able to snatch a point from the Leones (0-0). Valverde against Girona will be without Sancet and Paredes, while the Catalans will have to do without the disqualified Yan Couto.
The Prediction
Athletic Bilbao have won their last six games in front of their home crowd and should take advantage of the down moment of surprising Girona to move closer to fourth place. A positive result for the Basques is likely in a match of at least two goals overall.
The probable lineups of Athletic Bilbao-Girona
ATHLETIC BILBAO (4-2-3-1): Unai Simon; De Marcos, Yeray, Vivian, Yuri; de Galarreta, Prados; I. Williams, Unai Gomez, N. Williams; Guruzeta
GIRONA (4-3-3): Gazzaniga; Arnau, Eric García, Blind, Miguel; Yangel Herrera, Aleix García, Iván Martín; Tsygankov, Savinho, Dovbyk.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-1
