Real Madrid face Athletic Bilbao in bid to extend winning start

Only Real Madrid and Barcelona have won all of their La Liga games so far. Will that continue this weekend?

Athletic Bilbao have only played twice in the league this season after their away game against Rayo Vallecano was postponed due to the host’s stadium being deemed unsafe for spectators, and they are unbeaten so far.

A 2-2 draw at home with Huesca was followed up with a 3-1 victory at Real Valladolid, although Real Madrid will prove to be a far more testing challenge.

Real Madrid have played three times in La Liga thus far, winning on all three occasions. Their only clean sheet came against Getafe on the opening day, with 4-1 wins over both Girona and Leganes succeeding that result.

With Barcelona battling them for the La Liga title — and also on a maximum nine points from nine — every point counts in the race at the top.

As such, even this early in the season, picking up three points is vital for Real Madrid.

Key battles

Inaki Williams, who assisted Yuri Berchiche in Bilbao’s previous match against Huesca, has pace in abundance and will cause Real Madrid problems if he can vacate the space left by Marcelo when he bombs forward on the left side.

Central defenders Sergio Ramos and Rafael Varane will need to be aware of his speed on the counter-attack, whether Williams starts the game or comes off the bench.

Thibaut Courtois, signed from Chelsea during the summer, will begin the game in goal ahead of Costa Rican Keylor Navas.

Markel Susaeta and Inigo Cordoba will offer width for Bilbao in the wing areas, with Iker Muniain their creative spark — Casemiro will be tasked with keeping him quiet in the centre of the pitch; if he does so, it could be crucial in deciding the outcome.

Karim Benzema scored a brace in Real Madrid’s last outing and he will be looking to continue a good run of form, while Marco Asensio, who impressed for Spain against Croatia on Tuesday, and Gareth Bale, who scored for Wales during the international break, will be alongside him.

Previous meetings

Bilbao have only won once in the last 16 meetings between the sides, with Real Madrid emerging victorious in 75 percent of games.

They have, though, drawn three times, including both home and away in La Liga last season. Cristiano Ronaldo cancelled out Williams’ opener at the Bernabeu, while in Bilbao the fixture finished goalless.

Prior to that, Real Madrid had won four consecutive times against Bilbao, although the Basque side will be hoping to avoid a repeat of their 5-0 hammering at the hands of Madrid in October 2014.