"We are seeing that mixing footballers and the performance of everyone is magnificent. This month is very important and to see what our competitive level is. Against Athletic, we face a very similar situation to the one we already had against Atletico [Madrid], and we will see if we have a better response. In these last games, they were able to reap different results."
"Yes, we are seeing, and we try to have as much information as possible to prevent injuries. We will continue like this. Just as perhaps in those three initial games, they could have had fewer good results. I think they are a super competitive team, difficult to score goals with a solid structure and they have first-class offensive arguments. He is going to demand the most from us."
Athletic Bilbao began LaLiga 2025-26 with three straight wins but have failed to win their last three league games, most recently drawing with Girona. Villarreal sit three points clear and have taken 13 points from six matches, their best start since 2015-16 under Marcelino. Marcelino has not beaten Ernesto Valverde in his last eight LaLiga meetings (six draws, two losses), marking his second-worst winless run against a single manager after ten winless games versus Carlo Ancelotti. Marcelino praises Athletic as competitive, hard to score against, and possessing strong offensive options, and he emphasizes careful preparation and injury prevention.
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