Preview: Cadiz vs. Athletic Bilbao

Sports Mole previews Sunday’s La Liga clash between Cadiz and Athletic Bilbao, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Athletic Bilbao will be aiming to return to winning ways in Spain’s top flight when they head to a struggling Cadiz outfit on Sunday afternoon.

The visitors currently sit in fifth position in the La Liga table, boasting 41 points from their opening 21 matches of the campaign, while relegation-threatened Cadiz are down in 18th position.

Match preview
© Reuters

Cadiz named Mauricio Pellegrino as their new head coach earlier this week, with the 52-year-old, who has previously managed Valencia, Alaves and Leganes in Spain, given the task of keeping the team in the league.

Pellegrino’s first assignment is a tough one, with Cadiz welcoming one of the most impressive sides in the division this season, and the hosts will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 defeat at Alaves.

El Submarino Amarillo have now lost their last three league games during a poor run of form, while they have not managed to triumph in Spain’s top flight since the start of September.

Cadiz boast a record of two wins, nine draws and 10 defeats from their 21 league matches this season, which has left them in 18th position in the table on 15 points, one point behind 17th-placed Sevilla.

The Andalusian outfit have only lost three times at home in the league this season, though, drawing five times, and a stalemate on Sunday would certainly be a positive first result for Pellegrino.

Athletic, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 4-2 win over Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey, with the hosts scoring twice in extra time to advance to the final four.

The Lions have won seven of their last eight matches in all competitions, but they were beaten 1-0 by Valencia in their last league game, which saw them drop out of the top four.

Ernesto Valverde’s side have won 12, drawn five and lost four of their 21 league matches this season to collect 41 points, and they are level on points with fourth-placed Atletico Madrid and three behind Barcelona in third.

The Basque outfit have not managed to claim a top-four position in La Liga since the 2013-14 campaign, but they look well-equipped to battle for a Champions League spot for next term.

Athletic have picked up 15 points from their 10 away league matches this season, while they have won their last four La Liga games against Cadiz, including a 3-0 success in the reverse meeting at San Mames last September.

Cadiz La Liga form:

Athletic Bilbao La Liga form:

Athletic Bilbao form (all competitions):

Team News
© Reuters

Cadiz will be missing five players through injury on Sunday, with Fede San Emeterio, Luis Hernandez, Javi Hernandez, Darwin Machis and Roger Marti unavailable for selection.

Pellegrino’s plans in terms of the set-up of the team are unclear at this stage, but he is not expected to make immediate wholesale changes in terms of personnel.

Brian Ocampo could potentially be introduced in a forward area, but Chris Ramos should again feature in the final third, while Ivan Alejo and Robert Navarro are expected to keep hold of their starting roles.

As for Athletic, Dani Garcia remains unavailable for selection due to a thigh problem, while Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta and Alex Berenguer are doubts.

Inaki Williams had only just returned from Ghana duty at the Africa Cup of Nations when he came off the bench to score against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey.

The experienced attacker is now expected to come into the starting side for this match, while there will also be positions in the final third of the field for Nico Williams, Oihan Sancet and Gorka Guruzeta.

Cadiz possible starting lineup:
Ledesma; Zaldua, Fali, Chust, Pires; Alejo, Escalante, Alcaraz, Navarro; Ocampo, Ramos

Athletic Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Simon; Lekue, Vivian, Paredes, Yuri; Herrera, Vesga; I Williams, Sancet, N Williams; Guruzeta

We say: Cadiz 1-3 Athletic Bilbao
Cadiz’s fans will be hoping that the arrival of a new manager can inspire the team to pick up a positive result this weekend, but Athletic have been one of the best sides in the division this term, and we are finding it difficult to predict anything other than a victory for the Basque side.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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