Resurgent Barcelona will be aiming to maintain their push for a top four finish as they welcome Athletic Bilbao to Camp Nou in La liga. Bilbao have picked up some famous wins over Barca but the Catalans are beginning to show some of their old class and should have the edge here.
Barcelona have put their early season struggles behind them as they continue to improve under manager Xavi. The legendary midfielder has them looking a different side lately and they are unbeaten in their last six matches across all competitions, claiming four in that run.
The Catalans will head into Sunday’s clash on a high after claiming a 4-2 victory at Napoli on Thursday to progress in the Europa League. The result was a good follow up to the 4-1 win at Valencia in their previous La Liga fixture.
The goals appear to be flowing freely for Barcelona, who have now scored four goals in three of their last five matches across all competitions. Another positive is January signing Emerick-Aubameyang, who appears to have settled down quickly at Camp Nou with four goals in his last two matches.
Athletic Bilbao have also shown some good form lately and continue to push for a European place. They are currently two points behind sixth placed Villarreal and could find themselves inside the top six if results go their way this weekend.
Marcelino’s men travel to Camp Nou with just one defeat from their last six La Liga matches. They picked up a 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad in their previous fixture with Inaki Williams and Iker Munain both among the goals.
Athletic Bilbao have been poor on their travels and have claimed just two wins in their last 10 La Liga away matches. There is a 1-0 defeat to Real Madrid in that run while they were also beaten 3-2 by Mallorca in their previous fixture on the road.
How the bookies view it
Barcelona have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 8/13 by betway. A victory for Athletic Bilbao is valued at 26/5 by Vbet while a draw is set at odds of 16/5 with bet365.
Recent head to head
Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in two meetings with Barcelona this season, playing out a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture before claiming a 3-2 extra-time victory in the Copa Del Rey. However, the Catalans have won two of the last three meetings at Camp Nou.
Players to watch
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang appears to be settling fast at Barcelona after following up a hat-trick against Valencia with another goal at Napoli on Thursday. The Gabon striker is tipped at 23/20 by SpreadEX to maintain his scoring run.
Inaki Williams was on target last time out for Athletic Bilbao for his sixth goal of the season and will be the one to watch on Sunday. They striker remains the biggest attacking threat for the Basque club and is priced at 7/2 by Paddy Power to get on the score sheet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Barcelona have scored in both halves in their last two matches and could be set for a similar outcome at 13/8 with BoyleSports. There has been over 3.5 goals in their last two matches and a repeat is priced at 23/10 with betfair while over 2.5 goals is valued at 10/11 by bet365.
The Catalans are expected to come out on top on Sunday and could be tipped to earn a win and over 2.5 goals at 8/5 with BoyleSports.
This La Liga match between Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao will be played on Feb 27, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Barcelona vs Athletic Bilbao prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
