Granada vs Athletic Bilbao preview - Valverde going "all out" for win

Athletic Club coach Ernesto Valverde says his team will go "all out" to beat Primera Division bottom side Granada in order to put further distance between themselves and the relegation zone.

The Basques slipped back to within four points of the bottom three after last Sunday's 5-2 home defeat to Barcelona, making the trip to Granada all the more urgent.

However, the coach is confident his side can get a victory against Granada after coming out on top against fellow strugglers Levante on their last away trip.

"We'll go out against Granada, we are obliged to take three points against them because they are a direct rival," Valverde told a press conference.

"This game is very similar to the one against Levante. We are five points ahead of Granada so the difference between winning and losing is abysmal."

Athletic lost at home to Granada earlier in the season, preceding a run of seven games without a win for the Basques.

"That game caused us a lot of damage and was the start of a bad run that we are still struggling to get out of," admitted Valverde.

The coach also explained how Granada have developed since Abel Resino replaced Joaquin Caparros as coach.

"They have changed since he arrived and because some very good players have also come in such as Ruben Perez, Colunga, Juan Cala and Lass, and that has changed the look of the team. Their style has changed as well. Caparros had the team sitting further back and now with Abel they play a bit further forward. They beat Elche and played well against Villarreal and are now absolutely determined to get out of the bottom."

Valverde will be without midfielder Ander Iturraspe and forward Guillermo Fernandez through injury, while defender Xabi Etxeita is suspended after being shown a straight red card for a foul on Luis Suarez in the defeat to Barcelona. However, Athletic's list of absentees pales in comparison to Granada, who are without Ruben Rochina, Eddy Silvestre, Jeison Murillo, Sulayman Marreh, Luis Martins, Youssef El Arabi, Riki and Juan Carlos Perez, although goalkeeper Roberto Fernandez returns to action after recovering from an ankle injury.

Centre-back Jean Sylvain Babin praised Athletic's recent performances against Barcelona and Espanyol, the latter in Wednesday's Copa del Rey semi-final first leg game, but hopes the Basques will be drained physically as a result.

He told a press conference: "They played a very demanding game against Barcelona and against Espanyol you could see they exerted themselves to try and get an advantage in the cup tie, so I think they might be feeling the effects when they play us."