- Valencia CF have lost two of their last three games, including a 2-3 defeat to Real Sociedad on their home patch.
- Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in five across all competitions (W3, D2), winning their last two away games.
Valencia’s home record worse than their away in 2026/2027
Los Che have won one and lost four of their five previous matches across all competitions, so there's plenty to dislike about their chances of keeping it up in Saturday's LaLiga 2026-2027 clash against Athletic Bilbao at Estadio Mestalla. Valencia's away win at Deportivo Alaves was a welcome relief last time out, however, Javier Aguirre's side were beaten 2-3 by Real Sociedad in their previous fixture at home.
Aguirre has instilled a clear sense of structure and stability at the club since taking over from 23 September 2026 and the players have certainly looked more compact of late, but that hasn't been enough in LaLiga 2026/2027 thus far. Valencia are rock-bottom of the table with four points from their first seven matches, which is all the pressure that the hosts will need on Saturday.
Athletic Bilbao are in much better shape in tenth with eight points from their six matches and that's good enough to keep them in the European hunt. Edin Terzic's side are the slight favourites for this game at 2.08, although both Valencia (3.4) and the draw (3.4) have a case to be made.
Half-spaces and pressing can open Valencia up
The visitors have been more solid on the road, winning one and losing one of their two matches, and they score an average of 1.00 goals per game when on their travels, but it's Los Leones' pressing and attacking qualities that should give them the edge on the day.
Athletic's high-pressing 4-3-3 system has added tempo, vertical punch and cleaner build-up play to their game this season and that could be a problem for Valencia, who will aim to remain compact and keep things tight at the back. The away win looks the obvious pick, but we're going to swerve that in favour of the under 2.5 goals at 1.8, which looks a good fit for a tense, nervy affair with neither side possessing enough of a cutting edge to dominate the game.
A narrow victory for the visitors would make the most sense in the correct score market, although Valencia's need to win at home could make this a tense affair, so we're not expecting the hosts to lose by more than one goal. Los Che won the last head-to-head 1-0 away from home, but Athletic have won two of their previous three visits to this ground, so the Basque outfit will know that Valencia is a place where they can be raided.
