Celta Vigo vs Athletic Bilbao

Estadio de Balaidos is the venue as Celta Vigo and Athletic Bilbao head-to-head in a handsomely-looking La Liga encounter.

Despite a Herculean effort in midweek Copa del Rey action, Celta Vigo slipped to a 5-2 extra-time loss at Real Madrid. Celta’s three competitive matches in 2025 have produced over 2.5 goals and both teams on the scoresheet, highlighting the potential for a high-scoring contest. This particular theme has been common in Celta’s recent league meetings with Bilbao, with their last four following this pattern to the letter. Manager Claudio Giraldez wouldn’t mind a more conservative contest as he bids to inspire ‘Los Celestes’ to a fifth consecutive unbeaten home league outing for the first time this season (W3, D1). Achieving that feat with a ‘win to nil’ would see the Vigo outfit make it three successive La Liga victories at Balaidos without conceding for the first time since 2006!

Meanwhile, Athletic Bilbao fought tooth and nail to avoid Copa del Rey elimination but eventually slumped to a 3-2 home defeat to Osasuna during midweek. Back-to-back losses against top-tier opposition in 2025 paint a bleak picture for Ernesto Valverde’s top-four hopefuls ahead of their trip to Vigo, where they’ve lost their last two La Liga H2Hs via a single-goal margin. However, the Basque heavyweights have been in sparkling form in La Liga, avoiding defeat in ten consecutive matches since a 2-1 loss at Girona in early October (W6, D4). As a result, they’re one game away from going unbeaten in 11 top-flight games for the first time since 1985. Four wins from their last five competitive road trips can inspire further confidence as they bid to consolidate their position in the top four.