La Liga preview and odds: Granada vs Athletic Club

La Liga preview and odds: Granada vs Athletic Club

Sep 21, 2016 22:00pm - Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes

La Liga

Lowly Granada will go in search of their first win of the season when they welcome 10th-ranked Athletic Club de Bilbao to the Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes on Wednesday night.

Granada adapting to life under Paco Jemez

Granada fans felt they had hit the jackpot when they recruited Paco Jemez back in the summer. During his time at Rayo Vallecano, the likeable boss built a reputation for delivering exciting football while operating on a miniscule budget. So much so, that he was even linked with the head coaching role at the Spanish national team.

There were positive signs in the first game of the season when the Andalucian side drew 1-1 at home to last season`s Europa League semi-finalists Villarreal. However, the second game of the season resulted in a 5-1 whitewash at the hands of Las Palmas, and that was followed up by a 1-2 defeat at home to Eibar.

Those results could be excused when you consider that Jemez recruited over a dozen new players to the squad in the summer and some bedding in time was inevitable. There were signs that his famously intense training ground routines were starting to pay off in the last game when they held Real Betis to a 2-2 draw away from home. A win at home in midweek could be just what La Grana need to kick-start their season.

Meanwhile, their opponents, Athletic Club, will be striving for their third straight win in the league after defeating Depotivo La Coruna 0-1 away and Valencia 2-1 on home soil in their last two games. Prior to that, they had opened their season with back-to-.back defeats away to Sporting Gijon (2-1) and at home to Barcelona (0-1).

The Basque Country side are currently sat in the middle of the league table with a total of six points with four goals scored and four conceded. A win away on Wednesday could help them rise above their current average status.

Team news

The home side will be without the services of Frenchman Matthieu Saunier.

Meanwhile, the visitors will have to make do without Ager Aketxe who is still recovering from a knee injury picked up in May.

Recent form (League)

Granada: DLLD

Athletic Club Gijon: WWLL

Betting odds and tips

Athletic Club are notoriously slow starters but they seem to have recovered quickly from their early wobble this time round. Granada have had to integrate a huge number of new recruits and loan signings into their squad but the signs of a team starting to gel were on display against Real Betis last timemout. With those factors in mind, the draw looks good value for this one.

You can back the draw at 12/5 with Bet365

By Neil Morris

Go To bet365

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