The eighth round of La Liga action starts with a Basque derby on Friday as Deportivo Alaves visits Athletic Bilbao.
Deportivo Alaves have a very good record in the matchup with only one loss in the past seven meetings and bookmaker William Hill offers odds at 2.37 for them to avoid defeat again.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: September 30th, 11:00 A.M. (EST)
Finishing without a loss has been a big problem for Alaves this season as the team has struggled to score goals and its defensive record is among the worst in the division, but the Babazorros have just picked up a massive result by beating Atletico Madrid 1-0.
Javier Calleja’s men put in a great defensive shift by limiting the title defenders to just one shot on target and captain Víctor Laguardia delivered the winning goal early in the game.
Laguardia and former Newcastle man Joselu are the only Alaves scorers this season. The latter has actually had plenty of chances, but he hasn’t had enough luck in front of the goal. Alaves pretty much lives and dies by the form of Joselu, who has recorded back-to-back 11-goal years in La Liga.
Joselu can be a handful with his size and he also boasts good technical ability, so the Bilbao defenders are in for a proper battle. The Athletic backline has shown signs of weaknesses lately giving up three goals in two games and an improvement is needed here to make the home crowd happy.
Much like Alaves, Bilbao have also struggled on the attacking end, but they are a well-drilled side that’s tough to break down and it’s helped them pick up a pair of wins and four draws.
Manager Marcelino has suffered just nine losses since taking charge in January. With only 12 wins to show for from 37 matches, his results at the club haven’t been overly impressive, but the former Valencia boss has done enough to keep the team away from the relegation places.
Friday’s match will be a special outing for Athletic’s Inaki Williams. The 27-year-old forward is set to make his 203rd consecutive appearance in the league, which will break the record of former Real Sociedad defender Juan Antonio Larranaga.
Williams will no doubt look to mark the occasion with a win especially with Athletic having a poor record against their rivals. Alaves have suffered only two losses in the matchup since earning promotion back to La Liga in 2016.
