Besiktas vs Athletic Bilbao: Europa League match prediction

Current form

Besiktas' results do not satisfy the club management, and on January 19, the head coach was changed. Instead of Serdar Topraktepe, 51-year-old Norwegian specialist Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over the helm of the Turkish team, and he will face a serious test in the first match, because he will not play with some unknown team, but with a strong Spanish club. The hosts are only one point behind the 24th place, which allows them to go to the playoffs, so gaining points in the upcoming meeting is very important. At home, the team has not lost for four games in a row, so, of course, the fans have hope that the players and the coach will make every effort to please the fans and break into the top 24.

Disqualifications and injuries

Sanuch, Paulista, Zainutdinov, Terzi and Uysal are injured and will not take to the field.

Interesting trends for betting

• Besiktas have gone five games in a row without defeat.
• The hosts have scored in nine of their last ten matches

Tentative line-up: Gunok - Svensson, Topchu, Uduohai, Masuaku - Uchan, Al Musrati - Rashica, Rafa Silva, Muchi - Kilicsoy.

Current form

Athletic Bilbao shows impressive results. In Primera, the team is in fourth place in the standings. But the club has also had its failures. Since the beginning of 2025, Ernesto Valverde team has managed to fly out of two tournaments. First, they failed to reach the Super Cup final, losing to Barcelona with a score of 0:2, and then they played in the Spanish Cup with Osasuna and also suffered a fiasco, albeit a minimal one (2:3). In the national championship, everything is in order. Only on additional indicators are they losing third place to Barcelona.

It is worth mentioning the game in the Europa League, where Athletic did not lose a single match in six rounds played: a draw in the first round, and then five victories in a row. Also, one cannot ignore the fact that this team has the best defense in the European Cup, because they have conceded only two goals, while they have scored 11.

Injuries and disqualifications

Sanchez will not be able to take the field due to injury.

Interesting trends for betting

• Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in nine away games
• The visitors have conceded in the last three matches

Probable line-up: Padilla - Lecue, Vivian, Inigo Martinez, Ballenciaga - Vesga, Zubimendi, Muniain - Nico Williams, Raul Garcia, Inaki Williams.