- Sporting CP have won 3, drawn 1 and lost just 1 of their last 5 matches.
- Athletic Bilbao have won 2 and lost 3 of their last 5 in all competitions.
- Sporting CP have 13 points from 7 matches, 5 more than Athletic Bilbao, who have 8 from 7.
Chess match on the cards at San Mames
Sporting Clube de Portugal can get the better of Athletic Bilbao again in Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League fixture at San Mamés, just as they did 3-0 in a friendly played a year ago.
Valverde has been the master of organisation and counter-attack at Bilbao since taking over in July 2022. His players are compact in their 4-2-3-1, press energetically when necessary and hit quickly on the counter-attack.
Gorka Guruzeta is their danger man, operating as the number ten in the 4-2-3-1 and as a target-man in a 4-3-3. The team’s 1.00 goal per game in Champions League action has come from his movement, finishing and pace down the wings.
Borges has found a formula for Sporting
Rui Borges’ arrival at Sporting CP in December 2024 brought a more pragmatic approach and the flexibility to go between 3-4-3 and 4-2-3-1 with central overloads to control the tempo of games.
Sporting CP have taken just 1 draw and 2 losses from three away trips in the Champions League, but have been much improved away from home in recent weeks, avoiding defeat in their last two with one win and one draw.
The midfield has been less congested since Borges arrived and he has settled on a double-pivot which seems to have worked well with the Lisbon giants winning three straight after a 2-1 Champions League victory over Paris St-Germain and a 3-0 demolition of Casa Pia in the league.
This should be a tactical chess match with both clubs needing the points on the final league-phase matchday and the managers likely to change things around during the game to keep things in their favour.
Draw seems likely
It is tempting to take the Under 2.5 goals at 1/1 in this cagey fixture where the two clubs have averaged 1.00 goals per game each in the competition to date.
Sporting are in the best form and Luis Suarez is on a hot streak, so take the visitors to get at least a draw on the road.
The oddsmakers make Athletic Bilbao 57/50 favourites, with Sporting at 11/5 and a draw at 49/20, which seems a little generous to the Basques who are at home. The visitors have a hot hand right now and a run of three straight wins could see them through a close and tense game at Bilbao’s stadium.
