Athletic Bilbao won
Athletic Bilbao won
“Almeria” 9 rounds before the end of the championship got involved in the fight for survival. It is on the 17th place of the table, breaking away from the relegation zone in the class by 3 points. The White and Reds prefer to act as number two, relying on their explosive counter-attacks. In terms of the speed of the ball moving towards the opponent’s goal, they lead in this example.
The club’s biggest problem is poor defense. In terms of expected goals conceded (xga = 1.71), it ranks in the top three. The situation is complicated by the fact that in the upcoming match Almeria will not help the main attackers – Larzhi Ramazani (3+0) and El-Bilal Toure (6+2)
After a decline in form at the beginning of the calendar year, Athletic clearly began to gain momentum. Ernesto Valverde’s men have won 3 of their last 4 matchdays, including a derby against Real Sociedad (2-0) in the last game. Thanks to this, the “lions” reduced the loss to the European Cup zone to 4 points.
It is worth noting that “Basques” have one of the best defenses in the Example. In terms of expected goals conceded (xga = 0.88), it is second only to Barcelona (xga = 0.78).
Almeria has not been able to compete with opponents lately and is content only with single, well-played matches. I suppose that in this meeting the favorite who has gained form will be able to take advantage of the staff problems of the hosts.