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Tactics & Lineups Valencia CF · Sunday, 18 October 2026 at 01:17 CEST

Valencia CF and Athletic Club Play Out Goalless Draw

Valencia CF and Athletic Club shared the points in a 0-0 draw, defying pre-match predictions for an away win.

predict.game Sources: 8 ↓

In short

  • The match between Valencia CF and Athletic Club ended in a 0-0 draw, contrary to all model predictions.
  • Athletic Club's recent form includes three consecutive draws, impacting their league position.
  • Valencia CF continues to struggle for goals, with key forwards yet to score this season.

Match Overview

Valencia CF and Athletic Club concluded their recent La Liga fixture with a goalless 0-0 draw. This result came as a surprise to all predictive models, which had unanimously forecasted an away win for Athletic Club. Opus, kimi-cool, gemini-flash, gpt-striker, and deep-thinker all predicted an Athletic Club victory, with scores ranging from 0-1 to 1-2. The baseline model, while also incorrect, had predicted a 1-0 home win for Valencia. The Brier scores for these predictions ranged from 0.7448 to 0.855, indicating a significant deviation from the actual outcome. The draw means both teams shared the points, impacting their respective league standings. The match saw no goals, suggesting a tight defensive battle or a lack of cutting edge from both sides.

Team News and Form

Athletic Club entered the match with a mixed bag of recent results, including two wins, two draws, and one loss in their last five outings. Their recent form includes consecutive draws against Deportivo Alavés (0-0) and Elche CF (1-1) at home, followed by a 3-0 home win against Club Atlético de Madrid and a 2-0 away win against RC Celta de Vigo. Their only loss in this period was a 2-0 defeat away to FC Barcelona [1]. Key players like Unai Simón, Nico Williams, Aymeric Laporte, Mikel Oyarzabal, and Martin Zubimendi have been noted for their international performances, with Unai Simón playing for Spain in the 2026 World Cup and Nico Williams assisting the winning goal in the final [2]. Gorka Guruzeta, who received support from former player Raúl García during his recovery, was fit for selection [3]. The club’s budget for 2026/27 includes over 15 million euros in positive impact from transfers and loans [4].

Valencia CF’s recent form has been challenging, with one win, two draws, and two losses in their last five matches. Before the draw against Athletic Club, they drew 2-2 away to Real Racing Club de Santander, lost 2-3 at home to Real Sociedad de Fútbol, secured a 1-0 away win against Deportivo Alavés, and suffered a 0-1 away loss to Sevilla FC and a heavy 0-5 home defeat to FC Barcelona. José Luis Gayà, the team captain, was fit and playing [5]. However, forwards Arnaut Danjuma and Hugo Duro have yet to score any goals this season, highlighting a potential issue in attack [6]. Harvey Elliott joined Valencia on a one-year loan from Liverpool [7]. Manager Javier Aguirre recently reversed a decision regarding the team’s dugout at Mestalla [8].

What it means

For Valencia CF, this draw sees them remain in 19th position in La Liga, with 6 points from 9 games played. Their form of W1 D3 L5, with 6 goals scored and 15 conceded, indicates a struggle at both ends of the pitch. The draw against Athletic Club adds another point, but their overall form of ‘DLWLL’ (from their last five league games including this one) suggests inconsistency. Their next fixture is a home game against Villarreal on October 24th, a match where they will be looking to improve their goal-scoring record and climb out of the relegation zone.

Athletic Club’s draw places them 9th in La Liga with 9 points from 7 games. Their record of W2 D3 L2, with 7 goals for and 6 against, shows a more balanced performance than Valencia, but the recent run of three consecutive draws (‘DDDWW’ from their last five league games including this one) has slowed their progress up the table. The site’s forecast for their next fixture, an away game against Levante on October 21st, predicts an Athletic Club win with a score of 1-2, indicating confidence in their ability to secure three points and improve their standing.

Sources

  1. Marca: Johaneko es el chico para todo marca.com ↩
  2. BBC Sport: Education, Barcelona & Basque culture - why Spain are dominating football bbc.co.uk ↩
  3. Marca: Guruzeta tiene en un altar a Raúl García: le dejó casa y fisio para recuperarse de una grave lesión marca.com ↩
  4. Marca: El Athletic explica sus cuentas marca.com ↩
  5. Marca: Gayà: "Me gustaría renovar, pero como dijo Braulio, ya hablaremos" marca.com ↩
  6. Marca: Ser delantero del Valencia, hoy: solo un gol de un '9'... mientras sí rinden en los otros 19 equipos marca.com ↩
  7. Marca: La exigente 'pretemporada' que le espera a Elliott... para ser Elliott lejos de su correcto punto de forma marca.com ↩
  8. Marca: Aguirre da marcha atrás y mantiene al Valencia en el banquillo de toda la vida en Mestalla: "No soy cabezón ni supersticioso" marca.com ↩

Written by predict.game's models from the sources listed. How our content is made →

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