After being held at home by Cadiz in their previous fixture, Real Madrid face a tricky trip to San Mames against a dangerous Athletic Bilbao side in La Liga on Wednesday.
Athletic Bilbao earned a hard fought 3-2 victory over Real Betis in their previous La Liga fixture. Inaki Williams netted a brace while Oscar De Marcos was also on target as they fought back from behind to claim the win.
It was a much-needed victory for Athletic Bilbao as it ended a run of eight straight matches without a win. While manager Marcelino will be pleased with the result, they were not overly convincing and had to rely on a late blitz to claim the win.
Despite scoring three times against Real Betis, goals remain a problem for Athletic Bilbao. Raul Garcia has failed to score in his last four matches while Inaki Williams just ended a seven-match goal drought with his brace last time out.
Real Madrid were surprisingly held to a 0-0 home draw by Cadiz last time out in La Liga. They had a number of key players out due to injuries and COVID-19 but still had a strong enough line-up and will be disappointed not to have won.
While it was a disappointing result, Manager Carlo Ancelotti will consider it a minor setback that needs to be quickly put right. They are still six points clear at the top of La Liga and have won 10 of their last 11 matches across all competitions.
Real Madrid have also impressed on their recent travels and have won their last four away matches. Among their results in that run is a 2-1 victory at Barcelona while they also picked up a 2-0 win over Real Sociedad in their previous away fixture.
How the bookies view it
Real Madrid have the upper hand among the bookies at 5/4 with William Hill while a victory for Athletic Bilbao is valued at 5/2 with SBK. Bet365 is also offering odds of 13/5 for a draw.
Recent head to head
Real Madrid have the upper hand in recent matches with Athletic Bilbao and have won four of the last five meetings. They did the double over Bilbao last season with both matches ending in 1-0 victories.
Players to watch
Athletic Bilbao have generally struggled in attack this season and will be pleased to have ended a three-match scoreless run last time out. Inaki Williams was the star of the show with a brace and is priced at 15/8 with bet365.
Karim Benzema remains the top scorer in La Liga with 13 goals and will be the one to watch For Real Madrid. Despite not finding the net against Cadiz, the striker could still be worth a punt to score anytime at 6/4 with Paddy Power.
Anything else catch the eye?
Real Madrid have opened the scoring in three of their last four La Liga matches and could be tipped to score first at 20/23 with MansionBet. Athletic Bilbao had more goals after the break in their previous fixture and the second half could be tipped as the highest scoring half at 11/10 at Quinnbet.
Real Madrid have scored in both halves in three of their last four away matches and could be set for a repeat at 5/2 with Skybet.
This La Liga match between Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid will be played on Dec 22, 2021 and kick off at 20:30. Check below for our tipsters best Athletic Bilbao vs Real Madrid prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
In December 2020 we sadly 
