Espanyol vs. Athletic Bilbao 10/26/21 LaLiga Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Espanyol is hosting Athletic Bilbao at RCDE Stadium in round 11 of the Spanish LaLiga. Espanyol is in the solid form right now, and they are now in 11^th place in the standings. Bilbao has been outstanding so far this season, and they have lost only 1 game so far this season.

Espanyol has had a sloppy start to the season, but they are now undefeated in their last 3 games, and they have scored 6 goals during this streak. In their last game against Elche on the road, Espanyol has had 42% of ball possession, 7 shots on goal, 7 corner kicks, 1 big chance created, and 85% of the correct passes. Espanyol was losing in the first half, but they got ahead in the 52^nd minute. Unfortunately for Espanyol, they conceded a goal in the 84^th minute, and this game has ended in a 2-2 draw. De Tomas has been in great form for Espanyol with 5 scored goals, and 2 assists. Miguelon and Bare are both injured for Espanyol, while Paudo and Regano are still questionable. With this streak, Espanyol has shown us they can have good games, and if they can play this way for the better part of the season, they won’t have any problems securing their LaLiga status.

Bilbao hasn’t been scoring a lot, only 9 goals so far this season, but their defense was outstanding with only 5 conceded goals. With 16 points, Bilbao is in 8^th place, but they could jump all the way to 4^th if they get a win here. Bilbao not scoring a lot is not news, but they have never had the defense play so consistent as it does now, and we will see how long they can keep playing that well. Garcia, Martinez, and Williams have each scored 2 goals for Bilbao so far this season. Muniain has added 3 assists. Nolaskoain and Berchiche are injured, while Nunez and Villalibre are still questionable. Bilbao was hosting Villarreal in their last game this past weekend, and they were the better team with 52% of ball possession, 7 shots on goal, 9 corner kicks, 3 big chances created, and 85% of the correct passes. After they got ahead in the 14^th minute, Bilbao has conceded a goal in the 32^nd minute. Luckily for Athletic Bilbao, they were awarded a penalty kick in the 77^th minute, and they ended up winning this game 2-1. With only 1 loss in LaLiga so far this season, Bilbao has been one of the best teams in the league, and it’s nice to see them getting better.

When playing at home, Espanyol hasn’t lost to Bilbao in their last 6 games, but it will be hard for them to get a win here. Bilbao is still undefeated on the road this season, and I think it will stay that way. Both teams are in solid form, but I don’t see either team having an edge right now.