Predicted lineup of Real Madrid vs Athletic Bilbao: La Liga

Real Madrid will be looking for their fourth consecutive home win when Carlo Ancelotti’s side take on Athletic Bilbao.

The gap between Barcelona and Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga table was once nine points and has now shrunk to four points. However, Los Blancos still have two games left. To keep the pressure on the Catalans, the reigning Spanish and European champions need to collect all three points against Athletic Bilbao, their toughest La Liga opponents in over a month.

Athletic Bilbao are unbeaten in nine games and are currently in fourth place in the La Liga standings. The 2024 Copa del Rey champions will be able to count on the support of the home crowd as they look to capitalize on Real Madrid’s injury-hit squad.

The visitors are still without the injured Vinícius Júnior, Eduardo Camavinga, David Alaba, Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, but Rodrygo and Aurélien Tchouaméni are back in the team, giving Los Blancos a much-needed injury boost. Jude Bellingham is also ready to play despite being substituted at half-time against Getafe after a collision with David Soria.

This is what Real Madrid’s team could look like on December 4th against Ernesto Valverde’s men.

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TW: Thibaut Courtois—The goalkeeper will be looking to score his sixth domestic goal of the season.

RB: Lucas Vazquez—The Spaniard faces his toughest test yet since returning from injury against Nico Williams.

CB: Raul Asencio—Even though Tchouaméni is back in the team, Asencio’s impressive and physical performances have more than earned him a place alongside Rüdiger.

CB: Antonio Rüdiger—Rüdiger deserves a lot of credit for helping a weakened defense keep three straight clean sheets in La Liga.

LB: Fran Garcia—The 25-year-old could make way for Ferland Mendy to return to the eleven, but García has won the recent competition on the left wing. The defender poses a much greater attacking threat to Real Madrid than Mendy.

CM: Fede Valverde—Valverde’s brief stint on the right side is over, but he will still be involved in the team’s defensive duties should Vázquez need help against Williams.

CM: Luka Modrić—The biggest question mark surrounding Real Madrid’s lineup is in the middle of the park. While Tchouaméni, Dani Ceballos and Modrić are all fighting for the start, the Croatian brings the most creativity and fresh energy to the midfield after just 23 minutes of action at the weekend.

CM: Jude Bellingham– With three goals in as many La Liga games for Bellingham, the England international has made a big impact in the absence of Vinícius Júnior.

RW: Brahim Diaz—Díaz may not have the goals to his name, but the Moroccan international opens up plenty of opportunities for Los Blancos when given the freedom at the top.

ST: Rodrygo—The Brazilian scored three goals in Real Madrid’s two games against Athletic Bilbao last season and will look to repeat his performances on Wednesday.

Left: Kylian Mbappe– Mbappé has now scored two goals in his last two La Liga games, but the Frenchman still doesn’t look like the same player who scored 44 goals for Paris Saint-Germain last season.

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