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The pre-season features another set of matches this week as Celtic lock horns with Ernesto Valverde's impressive Athletic Bilbao side in a friendly encounter at the Celtic Park on Tuesday.
Celtic vs Athletic Bilbao Preview
Athletic Bilbao finished in eighth place in the La Liga table last season and slumped after a strong start to their league campaign. The Basque giants suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of RS Gimnastica in their previous game and will need to bounce back this weekend.
Celtic, on the other hand, finished at the top of the Scottish Premiership last season and have been in excellent form over the past year. The Scottish side played out a 1-1 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers last week and will need to take it up a notch to win this game.
Celtic vs Athletic Bilbao Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- The only game played out between the two teams took place in a friendly match in March 2011 at the Estadio San Mames and ended in a 0-0 stalemate.
- Celtic scored an impressive 114 goals in their 38 games last season, with Japanese striker Kyogo Furuhashi topping the goalscoring charts with 27 strikes to his name.
- Athletic Bilbao have been winless in three of their four friendly matches on their pre-season tour so far, with their only victory during this period coming by a 2-0 margin against Necaxa last month.
- Inaki Williams and Oihan Sancet were the most prolific players in all competitions for Athletic Bilbao last season and managed to score 10 goals apiece for the Basque side.
- Celtic lost two of their last five games at the end of last season and conceded a total of seven goals in these two matches.
Celtic vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction
Athletic Bilbao have an impressive squad at their disposal but have been plagued by inconsistency over the past year. Inaki Williams and Oihan Sancet can be lethal on their day and will look to make their mark this week.
Celtic can pack a punch at their best but will need to play out of their skins this week. Athletic Bilbao are the better team on paper and should be able to win this game.
Prediction: Celtic 1-2 Athletic Bilbao
Celtic vs Athletic Bilbao Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - Athletic Bilbao
Tip 2: Game to have over 2.5 goals - Yes
Tip 3: Celtic to score first - Yes
Tip 4: Inaki Williams to score - Yes
