Game Preview
On Sunday afternoon, Espanyol will aim to end their four-game winless streak in La Liga as they host Athletic Bilbao. Espanyol’s recent struggles have caused them to fall to 18th place in the standings, while Athletic sits in seventh place, seven points behind sixth-placed Villarreal before the upcoming round of fixtures.
Espanyol’s 27 points from 27 matches have placed them in a precarious position, and they may be relegated to the Segunda Division for the 2023-24 season. However, the battle for survival is tight, with only four points separating 19th-placed Almeria from 13th-placed Sevilla, with Elche being the only team lagging behind at this stage of the season.
Following Espanyol’s fourth consecutive defeat in Spain’s top flight, Diego Martinez was sacked as head coach, and Luis Garcia, who played for Espanyol from 2005 to 2011, has been appointed as an interim replacement.
Let’s check the latest picks, La Liga news, stats and La Liga expert picks for Espanyol vs Athletic. We’ve plenty of La Liga predictions for you to consider.
Athletic will not be looking to extend any favors to Espanyol, as they suffered a major disappointment in the Copa del Rey semi-final against Osasuna. Athletic will focus solely on the league, with the team currently sitting in seventh place, having gained 37 points from their first 27 matches of the season.
Espanyol will be missing Brian Olivan, Gori, and Adria Pedrosa due to injuries, while Sergi Gomez will be absent from the match owing to his red card against Girona. Leandro Cabrera is available again following his suspension and is expected to return to the starting lineup, and Nico Melamed is also likely to return in midfield. There may be few changes from the previous game against Girona, with Martin Braithwaite and Javi Puado likely to support Joselu, who has scored 12 league goals this season.
Inigo Lekue, Jon Morcillo, and Ander Herrera will miss the match due to injury, but Athletic may make a few changes, with Dani Vivian and Alex Berenguer potentially entering the starting lineup. Inaki Williams and Nico Williams are both expected to operate in the final third of the field, while Iker Muniain is likely to feature in a deeper area for the Lions.
Espanyol de Barcelona vs Athletic Club Game Information
- Date: 04/08/2023
- Time: 08:00 AM ET
- Location: Cornellà-El Prat.
- How to Watch Espanyol vs Athletic: ESPN+
- Live Stream: fubo.tv
Espanyol vs Athletic Betting Lines
Espanyol is +250 according to our Vegas La Liga Lines. This means that if you wager $100 you have the chance to win $250.On the other side, Athletic is +120 according to the Vegas La Liga Lines. This means that if you wager $100 you have the chance to win $120.
The implied probability for these two teams attached to the betting lines has Espanyol at a 28.57% chance of winning the game, meanwhile Athletic has 45.45% probability of finishing the game with the W.
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