Levante vs Athletic Bilbao Prediction, Betting Tips & Preview

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Levante

vs

Athletic Bilbao

KickoffWednesday 21 October 2026, 7:00pm

VenueEstadio Ciudad de Valencia

CompetitionSpanish La Liga

Levante cannot afford too many more slip-ups. Seven points from eight games, sitting 17th in La Liga and level on points with the side directly below them in the table, Luis Castro’s side are in the kind of position where every home game starts to feel like a must-not-lose. Athletic Bilbao are not exactly flying either, but they arrive at the Estadio Ciutat de Valencia with a three-game unbeaten run against Levante behind them and a squad that, even when depleted, knows how to grind out results.

This is a fixture that matters far more to the home side than the visitors, and that pressure cuts both ways. Levante need the points badly. But pressure can also make a team hesitant, and against a defensively disciplined outfit like Athletic, hesitant does not win you football matches.

Levante vs Athletic Bilbao Match Details

This La Liga fixture takes place at the Estadio Ciutat de Valencia, with Levante hosting Athletic Bilbao in what is a crucial mid-table battle in the 2026-27 Spanish top flight campaign. Both sides are in the bottom half of the division and will be eager to put some distance between themselves and the relegation places before the season gets any deeper.

Team News

Neither side is going into this one at full strength. Levante have a couple of injury concerns to manage, and Athletic are missing some significant attacking names, which shapes the way this game is likely to play out.

• Hugo Sotelo and Alex Primo are both ruled out for Levante through injury
• Karl Etta Eyong remains a doubt for the hosts and faces a late fitness assessment
• Oihan Sancet, Nico Williams and Unai Egiluz are all unavailable for Athletic Bilbao due to injury
• Gorka Guruzeta is also facing a late fitness test for the visitors
• Dani Vivian returns to availability for Athletic after missing recent games
• Peio Canales and Alvaro Djalo are expected to be part of the Athletic squad

Predicted Lineups

Castro will likely stick with the shape that has given Levante some structure recently. Ivan Romero, who has three goals in eight appearances this season, looks set to operate in the final third again. Victor Garcia is expected to start down the right, with Petar Ratkov potentially leading the line through the middle. The back four picks itself given the injury situation.

Levante: Ryan; Toljan, De la Fuente, Mandi, Sanchez; Olasagasti, Rey, Requena; Garcia, Ratkov, Romero

Edin Terzic is without several of his natural attacking options, and Maroan Sannadi looks set to be handed the central striking role for Athletic. Dani Vivian’s return bolsters a defence that has not been leaking goals, and Canales should add some creativity from midfield. The structure will be solid even if the cutting edge is blunted.

Athletic Bilbao: Simon; Areso, Alvarez, Laporte, Berchiche; Jauregizar, Ruiz de Galarreta; Navarro, Canales, Berenguer; Sannadi

Recent Form

Levante’s form makes uncomfortable reading. One win from eight league games, and that victory came back at the end of August against Real Betis, a 5-2 home result that now feels like a distant outlier. Since then the Frogs have picked up just three points from five games at this level. The 1-1 draw with Deportivo La Coruna last time out was another frustrating result, the kind that keeps you off the bottom but does nothing for your confidence or your position in the table.

Athletic have drawn their last three La Liga matches, including that goalless stalemate with Valencia at the weekend. Two wins, three draws and two defeats from seven games leaves them 12th on nine points, but crucially they have two games in hand on most sides around them. Those matches in hand are genuinely meaningful. The wins have come against decent opposition too, Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid, which shows there is quality in this Athletic squad even if the consistency is not quite there yet.

What stands out when you look at both sides right now is a lack of cutting edge. Levante are not scoring enough, and Athletic are coming into this having failed to score in their last game. The attacking absences for Terzic’s side make that concern even more pointed. Without Williams and Sancet in particular, Athletic look significantly less dangerous going forward.

Head-to-Head Record

The history between these two clubs is not kind to Levante. In 38 previous meetings across all competitions, the Frogs have managed just eight wins compared to 22 defeats. Athletic have won each of the last three encounters between the sides, including a 2-0 victory in the corresponding fixture last season. Levante’s last win over Athletic came back in December 2018, so we are talking about nearly eight years without a victory for the home side in this fixture.

Those numbers should give Levante fans pause, but they also carry a caveat. Athletic are missing a number of key attacking players for this one, and home form in La Liga does still count for something. That said, momentum and psychological edge are real factors in football, and Athletic carry both into this match.

Key Stats

• Levante have won just one of their eight La Liga games this season and have not won since late August
• Athletic are unbeaten in their last three meetings with Levante, winning all three, and Levante have not beaten them since December 2018
• Athletic have drawn their last three La Liga fixtures and have failed to score in their most recent game
• Ivan Romero leads Levante’s attacking threat with three goals in eight appearances this term

Levante vs Athletic Bilbao Betting Tips

The obvious angle here is goals, or more accurately the lack of them. Two sides who are both short of confidence in front of goal, a selection crisis in the Athletic attack, and a Levante side who have been drawing rather than winning. This has low-scoring stalemate written all over it, and the markets around goals and both teams scoring reflect an interesting opportunity.

Over and Under Goals Prediction

Under 2.5 goals looks the sensible call here. Athletic are without their most creative attacking players, Levante have been grinding out draws, and neither side is in a period of form that suggests goals are coming freely. A tight, scrappy game feels far more likely than an open shootout.

Corners Prediction

Under 9.5 corners looks reasonable given the profile of both sides. Athletic tend to be patient and structured rather than a team that forces play wide and whips balls in at pace, and Levante are not a high-tempo, high-pressure side right now. Expect a moderate corner count rather than a flooded tally.

First Goalscorer Prediction

Ivan Romero is the standout pick here for Levante. Three goals in eight games is a decent return, he is the man the home side look to in the final third, and with Guruzeta a doubt and Athletic’s attack looking threadbare, Levante may actually get the space they need to create chances at home. Romero at a generous price to score first makes sense.

Both Teams To Score (BTTS) Prediction

No is the call, and it is not a particularly difficult one. Athletic are without Williams, Sancet and Egiluz, with Guruzeta also a doubt. That is a lot of their attacking punch missing in one go. Levante are not exactly prolific themselves, but with Athletic so short-handed going forward, the visitors keeping a clean sheet feels like a real possibility. BTTS No offers value here.

Cards Prediction

With a lot at stake for Levante and Athletic not in the business of gifting easy wins, expect a physical, competitive midfield battle. Over 3.5 cards is a fair shout. Both sides have players who will put the foot in when the game tightens up, and games with this much riding on the result tend to produce a healthy card count.

Correct Score Prediction

A 1-1 draw feels like the most natural outcome here. Athletic have the defensive quality to avoid defeat, but without their main attacking weapons they are not going to bulldoze Levante at home. Levante can nick a goal through Romero or Ratkov but may not have enough to hold on for three points. One apiece feels like what this fixture is building towards.

Bet Builder Tip

All three picks point to the same low-scoring, tightly contested game that the form, the injuries and the head-to-head history strongly suggest we are getting here.

Final Match Prediction

Athletic Bilbao have too much defensive know-how to be turned over by a Levante side this low on form and confidence, but without Williams, Sancet and likely Guruzeta, they do not carry the attacking threat to go and win this one away from home either. Terzic’s side will be solid, compact and hard to break down, but scoring goals is going to be a real problem for them.

Levante need this badly, they are at home and they have just enough going forward through Romero to threaten. But they have not beaten Athletic in the best part of eight years, and that psychological weight does not simply disappear because the visitors are missing a few players. A 1-1 draw feels right. Both managers probably take a point and move on.

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