Real Madrid vs Athletic Club predictions and match preview for Thursday’s Spanish Supercopa Semi-Final. Read on for the head-to-head and analysis as these old foes meet in Malaga.
- DATE: Thursday 14th January 2021
- KICK-OFF: 21:00 (local time)
- STADIUM: La Rosaleda
- COMPETITION: Supercopa
Real Madrid vs Athletic Club Preview
The second Semi-Final in the Supercopa takes place on Thursday evening in Malaga. Real Madrid will be the strong favourites in this one as they aim to earn a crack at defending the trophy they won in Saudi Arabia last year.
Los Blancos head into this on a bit of a sour note though. They were frustrated at having been made to travel to Pamplona on a weekend when all other forms of transport out of the Spanish capital were all but impossible due to the heaviest snow to hit Madrid in half a century. The conditions weren’t great at pitch level either as Zinedine Zidane’s side played out a dour 0-0 draw to lose ground in the title race.
The Supercopa will rank last in terms of Real Madrid’s priorities this season but they have specialised in winning trophies under Zidane and will be expected to progress into the final here. Their overall form is still good with 7 wins and 2 draws from their last 9 matches in all competitions but they’ve only scored more than twice in 2 of their last 14 games overall, one of which was the 3-1 win in the league clash with Athletic.
The Basque giants have a new coach at the helm now with Gaizka Garitano having been dismissed and replaced by Marcelino. Athletic should be marginally the fresher of the two sides after their weekend game in Madrid against Atleti was called off and this will now be their second game under the new boss.
The Supercopa is something of a free hit for Marcelino and Athletic, as they are the rank outsiders coming into the competition. They struggled to compete with Barcelona in LaLiga last week despite taking a very early lead through Inaki Williams and this game continues the baptism of fire for the former Valencia coach.
Head to Head
- Last 6 Competitive Meetings: 3 Real Madrid Wins, 3 Draws.
- Real Madrid have won 3 of the last 4 meetings.
- They were 3-1 victors when the clubs met in Madrid in LaLiga last month.
- Athletic haven’t beaten Los Blancos since a 1-0 win at San Mames in March 2015.
Real Madrid vs Athletic Club Predictions
Score Prediction: Real Madrid 2-1 Athletic Club
Real Madrid should be at full strength here and unless Zidane decides to take a bit of a risk by resting first teamers, Los Blancos ought to emerge victorious. Athletic have the potential to develop into an effective counter-attacking team under their new coach but it will take some time and they may struggle to get much of a foothold in this game.
Spanish Supercopa Betting Tips (18+)
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