Football is full of local derbies and one of the more interesting ones in the Spanish game is the Basque country derby between Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad. The two teams meet at San Mames on Friday night.
Athletic have made a solid start to their La Liga campaign, picking up four points from games against Barcelona and Getafe. The opening weekend result of a 1-0 win over Barcelona is unlikely to be bettered this season by Gaizka Garitano’s team.
The home side will be glad to have kicked off their campaign in such a solid manner, as their recent form in the Spanish top-flight has been so erratic.
However, Athletic have been highly consistent on home soil in La Liga. In fact, they are unbeaten in their last 15 league games, having recorded five wins from their last six outings. Although the matches in that undefeated home run have not always been high-scoring, Athletic have failed to score in just one of their last 14 home league games at San Mames.
4⃣8⃣ hours to live this 😍🏟 San Mames, 10 p.m., @LaLigaEN#AthleticRealSociedad #AthleticClub 🔴⚪🦁 pic.twitter.com/Ebu862xjCY— Athletic Club (@Athletic_en) August 28, 2019
4⃣8⃣ hours to live this 😍🏟 San Mames, 10 p.m., @LaLigaEN#AthleticRealSociedad #AthleticClub 🔴⚪🦁 pic.twitter.com/Ebu862xjCY
Just like their hosts, Real Sociedad have also picked up four points from their opening league games of the season. Imanol Alguacil’s side has drawn 1-1 with Valencia while winning 1-0 at La Liga new boys Mallorca last time out.
The opening gameweeks result leaves Real Sociedad with a record of four wins from their last six matches in La Liga, having suffered just one defeat. One feature of Sociedad’s recent games is that they have been low-scoring, with under 2.5 goals scored in four of their last five matches in the Spanish top-flight.
The visitors have won just two of their previous 12 matches on their travels in La Liga. A trip to San Mames is not usually a cure for travel sickness though.
There isn’t much between these two teams in terms of quality. Therefore, there is little surprise that Forebet predicts that this clash will finish in a low-scoring draw.