San Mames: Home of Athletic Bilbao(credit:
Wikipedia)
Athletic Bilbao midfielder Carlos Gurpegi believes today’s clash with Sevilla is a must-win game for the club.
Four successive defeats have all but ended Athletic’s challenge for a Champions League spot, but they are firmly in contention for a place in the Europa League.
However, Gurpegi admits that they can ill afford to lose any more points if they wish to remain in the hunt, especially against fellow European hopefuls Sevilla
He said: “It's a very important game against a direct rival.
“It would be a good day to get back to winning and we need to take advantage of our opportunities.
“We cannot allow another game to escape from us because our rivals are winning and we cannot slip behind.”
He added: “We were all aware that sooner or later Sevilla were going to start winning games.
“They are a great team, you only need to look at the players they have in attack, they are goalscorers. They are a very dangerous opponent.
“With the head-to-head record, the fact we are playing at home and against a direct rival, I would class this game as a `final'.”
While Athletic Bilbao head into this game on the back of a 2-1 defeat at Real Zaragoza, Sevilla boosted their European challenge with a 3-0 victory over Sporting Gijon.
Watch Athletic Bilbao v Sevilla live at 365, kicking off at 18.00 GMT.