In a crucial clash at the Estadio de Balaídos, Celta emerged victorious against Athletic Bilbao with a scoreline of 2-0. Forward Williot Swedberg opened the scoring just two minutes into the second half, followed by Jones El-Abdellaoui, who sealed the victory in the 54th minute.
Athletic Bilbao demonstrated attacking intent, registering 14 shots throughout the match; however, their finishing proved to be lacking. Of those attempts, 6 were on target, 1 hit the post, and 7 went wide of the goal.
Nico Williams, midfield dynamo for Athletic Bilbao, had a chance to bring his team back into the game when he missed a penalty in the 64th minute, which could have altered the course of the match.
Óscar Mingueza was the standout player of the match, completing 56 successful passes and recovering 2 balls for Celta. Javi Rueda also played exceptionally well, contributing 27 successful passes and another 2 recoveries.
Coach Claudio Giráldez set up Celta in a 3-4-3 formation, with Ionut Radu in goal; Manu Fernandez, Carl Starfelt, and Marcos Alonso forming the defense; Javi Rueda, Miguel Román, Hugo Sotelo, and Óscar Mingueza in the midfield; and Iago Aspas, Ferrán Jutglà, and Williot Swedberg leading the attack.
On the other hand, Ernesto Valverde’s Athletic Bilbao lined up in a 4-5-1 formation, featuring Unai Simón in goal; Jesús Areso, Dani Vivian, Aitor Paredes, and Yuri Berchiche in defense; Iñigo Ruiz, Mikel Jauregizar, Álex Berenguer, Oihan Sancet, and Nico Williams in midfield; and Gorka Guruzeta up front.
The referee for the encounter was Alejandro Hernández Hernández.
Looking ahead to the next matchday, Celta will travel to face Real Oviedo, while Athletic Bilbao will host Espanyol. With this result, Celta has now accumulated 22 points in the league, sitting in eighth place, while Athletic Bilbao stands one position higher with 23 points.
Substitutions for Celta
45’ 2T – Ferrán Jutglà out for Jones El-Abdellaoui, Oihan Sancet out for Selton Sánchez, Álex Berenguer out for Iñaki Williams.
60’ 2T – Javi Rueda out for Sergio Carreira, Hugo Sotelo out for Ilaix Moriba.
75’ 2T – Williot Swedberg out for Borja Iglesias.
79’ 2T – Iago Aspas out for Hugo Álvarez, Gorka Guruzeta out for Urko Izeta.
Yellow Cards for Celta:
43’ 1T Ferrán Jutglà (Unsporting behavior), 31’ 2T Iago Aspas (Insulting or disagreeing with the referee), 50’ 2T Borja Iglesias (Unsporting behavior).
Substitutions for Athletic Bilbao
50’ 2T – Yuri Berchiche out for Adama Boiro.
76’ 2T – Nico Williams out for Nicolás Serrano.
Yellow Cards for Athletic Bilbao:
20’ 2T Iñaki Williams (Unsporting behavior), 41’ 2T Dani Vivian (Unsporting behavior).