Last Updated on April 11, 2026 8:04 pm by ZUWP Automation
Four defeats in five for the hosts. A visiting attack brimming with goals. Something has to give on the Basque coast.
Athletic Club arrive at their own ground on Sunday carrying the weight of a form collapse that has turned a promising season into a fight for respectability. One win from their last five matches. Four defeats. A side that has been outscored, outrun, and outmanoeuvred in recent weeks now faces a Villarreal team that has been quietly accumulating goals all season.
Match Details
- Fixture: Athletic Club vs Villarreal
- Venue: San Mamés Barria
- Date: 12 April 2026
- Competition: La Liga 2025/26
Current Form
The numbers for Athletic Club are stark. Their summary reads 1W 0D 4L in their last five, and the results carry no flattering context. A 0-2 defeat away at Getafe last weekend. A 0-3 loss at Girona in March. A 0-1 home defeat to Barcelona. The only interruption was a 2-1 win over Real Betis at San Mamés, a result that now looks like a brief reprieve rather than a turning point.
What is particularly troubling is the pattern of clean sheets conceded. Athletic have been shut out twice in five matches while their own defence has leaked in all four defeats. San Mamés has been a fortress historically, but the confidence required to impose themselves at home has visibly drained from this side.
Villarreal’s form is mixed but more encouraging. Their 2W 1D 2L in five summary masks a team capable of hurting anyone on their day. Back-to-back wins over Elche and Valencia in February and March showed their attacking quality. A 1-1 draw at Deportivo Alavés suggested some inconsistency, and a 0-1 loss at Girona last weekend is the blot. But they arrive in Bilbao with momentum relative to their hosts, and with an attack that has been producing all season.
Key Players to Watch
Athletic Club
Gorka Guruzeta is the focal point of everything Athletic do going forward. Six goals and 60 shots this season tell the story of a striker who generates volume, and his 24 shots on target underline that the attempts are not aimless. He has created five big chances for teammates as well, making him the team’s most complete attacking threat. If Athletic are to find a way through Villarreal’s defence, it will almost certainly run through him.
Mikel Jauregizar is the engine Athletic cannot afford to lose. The midfielder has registered 57 tackles, 40 interceptions, and 1,062 total passes this season, ranking him 26th in La Liga for tackles. With a rating average of 6.86, he has been one of the side’s most consistent performers in a difficult campaign. His ability to win the ball and distribute quickly is what gives Athletic’s press its teeth.
Oihan Sancet carries the creative burden from midfield. Forty shots and 24 key passes this season suggest a player who wants the ball in dangerous areas. He has, however, missed seven big chances, which reflects the broader frustration of a side that has struggled to convert its opportunities. Against a Villarreal side that will look to counter, his decision-making in the final third will matter.
Villarreal
Alberto Moleiro is the player Athletic’s defensive midfield will need to track relentlessly. Nine goals and four assists in 29 appearances, ranking him 26th in La Liga for goals scored. He has created seven big chances this season and completed 25 successful dribbles. At 6.74 average rating, he is Villarreal’s most influential attacking player and the one most likely to unlock a fragile Athletic backline.
Georges Mikautadze provides the finishing threat to complement Moleiro’s creativity. Nine goals from 25 appearances, with 51 shots in total and 25 shots on target. He has missed 14 big chances this season, which is a significant number, but he has also scored from seven of them. A striker who gets into positions regularly, even if he does not always take them. Against an Athletic side leaking goals, he represents a serious danger.
Nicolas Pépé rounds out a formidable Villarreal attack. Five goals, four assists, and a league-leading 10 big chances created for his side, ranking him 34th in La Liga for chance creation. His combination with Moleiro and Mikautadze gives Villarreal multiple routes to goal, and Athletic’s defence will be stretched in trying to contain all three.
Season Stats Comparison
The individual statistics underline a clear imbalance in attacking output between the two sides. Villarreal’s top scorer has three more goals than Athletic’s, their top chance creator has double the big chances created, and their goalkeeper has been called into action far less frequently, suggesting a more defensively solid structure overall.
| Stat | Athletic Club | Villarreal |
|---|---|---|
| Top Scorer | Guruzeta (6 goals) | Moleiro (9 goals) |
| Top Assister | Berenguer (1 assist) | Moleiro (4 assists) |
| Top Goalkeeper (saves) | Unai Simón (83) | Arnau Tenas (6) |
| Top Tackler | Jauregizar (57) | Mouriño (73, 9th in La Liga) |
| Top Chance Creator | Guruzeta (5 big chances created) | Pépé (10 big chances created) |
Unai Simón‘s save tally of 83 is the most revealing number in this table. It places him 16th in La Liga and tells you everything about the defensive workload Athletic’s goalkeeper has absorbed this season. Villarreal have not needed their keepers anything like as much, which speaks to a more settled defensive structure. For Athletic to get a result here, Simón will almost certainly need to be at his best again.
Head to Head
These sides have met three times in the recent record, with one win apiece and a draw. The series is perfectly balanced, which makes the psychological edge difficult to assign to either side. What history does offer is that margins have been tight: no result has been a rout, and no side has dominated the series.
The last meeting, in September 2025, ended 1-0 to Villarreal at their own ground. A narrow home win that kept the record level. Athletic will be hoping that San Mamés provides a different kind of equation on Sunday.
Team News
No injuries have been reported for either side ahead of this fixture. Both managers have a full squad to choose from, which removes any tactical disruption from the equation and puts the focus squarely on form and motivation.
Closing Paragraph
Athletic Club’s recent form has the look of a side that has lost its way at precisely the wrong moment of the season, and Villarreal arrive with the attacking personnel to exploit that vulnerability. The question is whether San Mamés, and the pressure of a home crowd demanding a reaction, can drag something out of a side that has conceded in each of its last four defeats. Guruzeta against a Villarreal defence that has been tested all season. Moleiro and Pépé against an Athletic backline that has been leaking. The individual battles are compelling. Whether Athletic’s collective spirit has enough left to win one of them is the question this Sunday will answer.
