Athletic Bilbao coach Ernesto Valverde rates their clash with Real Betis as "very important".

The two teams meet at San Mames on Sunday night.

"This season one of our objectives is to improve our home numbers," Valverde said at his pre-match press conference.

"It's a very important game for us. It's a good opportunity to keep that winning feeling. We want to get ourselves into the sort of league positions that interest us early on."

He added: "In recent years, Betis have qualified for Europe on a regular basis. They have already faced two important opponents this season, picking up a total of four points. They were already strong last year and have a lot of potential."