Athletic Bilbao vs Barcelona Prediction: Back Barca to win the Second Half at 11/8

Barcelona are champions and they'll get one final run-out for the campaign up in Bilbao at the wonderful San Mames Stadium, which hosted the Europa League Final on Wednesday. Premier Sports 1 for this game with kick-off set for 20:00.

Our Spanish-based La Liga Betting expert is heading to the match and he's picked out two things he's expecting to see as we check out his match preview and Athletic Bilbao vs Barcelona Predictions...

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Barcelona finish a successful first season under Hansi Flick on Sunday night. Their final game, and the very final fixture of La Liga 2024/25, sees the newly-crowned champions head to Bilbao to take on Athletic Club at San Mamés. 

Both clubs have something to celebrate, with this also being Athletic's first home match since they secured Champions League qualification with a 2-0 victory at Getafe the week before last. 

Therefore, nothing is really riding on this game, but we did see Flick name a surprisingly strong lineup in his team's first match after clinching the title with a derby victory at Espanyol. 

That win was followed by a parade in Barcelona, with a reported 670,000 fans taking to the streets, significantly more than the figure that turned out two years ago when Xavi's side won La Liga. 

That's largely a reflection of the sense that this success has come with the kind of style and attacking football that Barça fans love to see from their team. They head into the final weekend just one goal shy of the 100-mark in La Liga this term, and 29 clear of the tally managed during their last league title win. 

There might have been a few hangovers in the Barça camp last weekend, and they weren't at their best in the home game against Villarrreal on matchday 37, going down 3-2 despite fine goals from Lamine Yamal and Fermín López. They'd won 15 out of 16 in the league prior to that though, so the result did little to dampen the spirits of their title party. 

Athletic can at least take encouragement from the fact that Barcelona have conceded at least three goals in six of their last 10 matches in all competitions. 

The visitors surely can't afford to let in that many in this match, given they'll be faced with the task of breaking down La Liga's meanest defence. Athletic have only conceded 26 times in La Liga this term, 12 fewer than Real Madrid and 13 less than Barcelona. 

Los Leones head into this game following five straight clean sheets in the league, with wins to nil over Alavés, Getafe and Valencia guaranteeing them a fourth-place finish, one that not only means they will take part in next season's Champions League, but also the Spanish Supercopa. 

With Spain number one Unai Simón in goal, behind a strong back four which is marshalled by the impressive Daniel Vivian, Athletic are a really solid side that also has quality in the final third in the shape of the Williams brothers, as well as top scorer Oihan Sancet who has netted 15 times from midfield in La Liga, despite only starting 19 games, with injury problems impacting on his season. 

By just about any measure, this has been an outstanding season for Ernesto Valverde's team, but it is one that will be forever tinged by the disappointment of not making it to this week's Europa League final, played in their own stadium. 

Athletic had done a fantastic job of juggling their domestic and European commitments right up until the semi-final, but they really didn't show up against a Manchester United side that they believed they were well capable of beating. 

Wednesday's showpiece between two English clubs at San Mamés would have been a particularly tough watch for Athletic fans, but they should still generate a cracking atmosphere on the final weekend and they'll be a positive addition to next season's Champions League. 

Team News: 

Most of the injury problems that hampered Athletic during their semi-final against United have now cleared up, and Valverde should have a full squad to pick from against his former club on Sunday. 

He's likely to name a strong starting lineup, although Nico Williams may only make the bench having missed the past few weeks due to a groin issue. 

As for Barça, they are still missing Ferrán Torres, Jules Koundé and Marc Bernal for this final day clash. The absence of Ferran should ensure Robert Lewandowski starts, but he's now well behind Kylian Mbappé in the Pichichi race and will likely need to work for any opportunities against this Athletic defence. 

We could see a few changes from Flick following last weekend's defeat, with Alejandro Balde, Frenkie de Jong and Dani Olmo the players most likely to come into the side. 

Athletic Bilbao vs Barcelona Odds

Barcelona are the 23/20 favourites to win this game. You can back Athletic to upset the champions at 21/10 while the Draw is priced at 11/4. 

Valverde's side boast a stunning home record, with just one defeat in 37 league matches at San Mamés since the opening day of last season. You can back Athletic Club or Draw at 7/10 in this game, while the hosts are priced at 19/20 to win either half. 

Alternatively, if you see the visitors having too much quality on the night, you can back Barcelona and Over 2.5 goals at 9/5, while the visitors are priced at 5/2 to score over 2.5 goals in the match. 

Both teams to score is on offer at 4/9, but if you see this being a bit tighter than expected, you can back Under 2.5 goals at 6/4, a winning bet in all of Athletic's last six league games. 

Lewandowski leads the way as the 4/1 favourite to score first, while he's on offer at 23/20 to score anytime. Punters can also back Raphinha to score anytime at 7/4, while in-form Lamine Yamal is priced at 11/4. 

From a home perspective, Sancet may provide the main goal threat again, with the 25-year-old available at 11/2 to score first and 13/8 to score anytime. 

Bet 1 - Barcelona or Draw & Lamine Yamal 2+ shots on target @ 7/4 

Barcelona weren't at their best last weekend, not surprising given the match took place less than 72 hours on from their title-clinching victory, with some big celebrations following that. 

One week on, they should be much fresher and more focused here. While Athletic's home record is very impressive, Barça have been the class act in Spanish football this season, and they'll be hungry to sign off with a victory in Bilbao. 

Their attack is likely to be spearheaded by Yamal, with the teenager netting in each of his last three games, and having at least two shots on target in seven of his last eight matches. 

He hit the target four times in the defeat to Villarreal last time out, and I'm using the Bet Builder to back Barcelona or Draw and Lamine Yamal 2+ shots on target at 7/4 here. 

Bet 2 - 2nd Half Result - Barcelona @ 11/8 

With some of their recent injury issues clearing up, Barça should have quite a strong bench for this game, and statistically they have been much better after the break in away games this season. 

While they've only scored 13 and conceded 11 in the first half of away fixtures in La Liga 2024/25, they've registered 34 goals and conceded just eight after the break. Taking into account that 80% of the home goals that Athletic have conceded in the league have come after the interval, there's reason to fancy the Catalans to have the better of the second half here. 

There may be a bit of fatigue in both camps at the end of a long season that has seen both teams reach European semi-finals, but I can see the visitors taking advantage of any space that opens up as the game wears on, and I'm backing Barcelona in the Second Half Result market at 11/8.