Athletic Bilbao boss sends Manchester United warning ahead of pre-season friendly

Athletic Bilbao manager Ernesto Valverde has hinted his side will treat this afternoon's friendly like a competitive game as they prepare for a challenging start to their new season.

The Spanish side kick off their 2023/2024 La Liga campaign against Real Madrid next weekend. This afternoon's clash with United at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin represents their final pre-season friendly.

Erik ten Hag named his strongest eleven for Saturday's 3-1 win over RC Lens at Old Trafford, and the Dutchman hinted that a second-string side will head to Dublin. They look set to face a tough challenge, with Valverde eyeing today's friendly as a benchmark for their season.

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"This is a strong game against a very high-level opponent," he said. "What we hope is to compete at our best level, to be able to stand up to them and, of course, win. It's what we want.

"All the teams are fine-tuning and finalising our preparation for the start of the championship. It is good for us to measure ourselves against a rival of that calibre, more than anything because of the start of the League that we have."

Saturday's win at Old Trafford - a day in which Rasmus Hojlund was unveiled as the club's latest signing - saw the majority of those starting get 90 minutes under their belt for the first time in pre-season. Speaking after full-time, Ten Hag suggested those who did not feature would walk out at the Aviva Stadium.

"We looked for two strong opponents on the final weekend. We want to get the players 90 minutes in the legs," Ten Hag told MUTV.

"Tod