Athletic Club Focuses on League Amidst Copa Del Rey Preparations

omidbasir- Athletic Club is currently prioritizing their league campaign, putting the Copa del Rey on hold. The team is enjoying a day of rest this Thursday, with their immediate focus being the league. The return leg of the Copa semifinal is scheduled to take place at Anoeta on March 4, and until then, the team aims to solidify their anticipated resurgence in the league. Optimists within the club believe that a successful run could bring them closer to the sixth position, from which they are currently six points adrift. Real Sociedad is in a similar position, although they have a three-point advantage over Athletic.

Having secured only one victory in their last five league matches, which included two losses and two draws, Athletic faces a pivotal three weeks ahead. They will contend against Oviedo on February 15, Elche on February 20, and Rayo on February 28, all of which are crucial fixtures leading up to the Copa semifinal. Notably, all three opponents currently sit lower in the standings: Oviedo is at the bottom and will remain in the relegation zone regardless of their performance against Athletic, while Rayo occupies the last relegation position but has one game in hand compared to teams above them. Additionally, the three relegation-threatened teams along with Villarreal have yet to catch up on one match each.

The Copa del Rey journey will culminate in an important encounter at Anoeta in three weeks, where the second finalist for La Cartuja will be determined, as Barcelona and Atlético Madrid will face off the day prior. Athletic will need to secure a win, a feat they have not achieved in Donostia since March 2017. On that occasion, they won 0-2, a scoreline that would send them to the final; however, in the following eight matches at the txuriurdin’s home ground, they have recorded five losses and three draws, scoring nine goals and conceding fifteen.

The historical record in confrontations with Real Sociedad does not favor Athletic. In contrast, their journey to the last four Copa finals has been more favorable, having never lost the first leg against Atletico, Levante, Granada, or Espanyol; they recorded two wins and two draws. They advanced in the return legs against Atlético and Levante while drawing with Espanyol, only losing to Granada, but progressed due to the away goals rule which counted double in case of a tie.