Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao will play each other on Sunday in their first La Liga game of the season. These teams recently faced off in the Spanish Super Cup, so the tension couldn't be higher.

Let's preview the opening game and pick a winner.

Barcelona

Barcelona just experienced one of the greatest seasons ever for a soccer club. They won the Copa del Rey, Champions League title, and they are the defending La Liga champions. They became the first club to win the treble since 2008-09 Barcelona squad did so.

However, this opening game won't be a walk in the park. Barcelona got destroyed last time they played Athletic Bilbao at Bilbao, 4-0. This game will again be at Bilbao, and Neymar is not expected to play because of the mumps. Neymar missed both legs of the Spanish Super Cup because of the illness. Luis Suárez will have to play better than ever.

Chilean-born goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, who won the Ricardo Zamora Trophy, should be starting in net for Barcelona.

Last season Barcelona had the No. 1 ranked defense in the league, allowing fewer shots and goals against than any other team, but their performance against Athletic Bilbao on the road did show some weakness. Maybe Barcelona was just exhausted. We'll find out on Sunday.

Athletic Bilbao

Athletic Bilbao has won eight Spanish League championships, but they haven't won it all since the 1983-84 season. Their victory over Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup was very impressive considering the fact that they were able to win the first leg, 4-0.

Last season Athletic Bilbao had a somewhat disappointing season, as they placed just seventh in the standings with 15 wins and 13 losses. Last season Athletic Bilbao scored just one more goal than they allowed. Aritz Aduriz led Athletic Bilbao in scoring last season with 18 goals. Incredibly, not a single player (other than Aduriz) had more than five goals last season for Athletic Bilbao. Balanced scoring is something coach Ernesto Valverde knows has to improve this year. Aduriz scored a hat trick in the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona last week.

Goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz is expected to start in net for Athletic Bilbao.

Schedule, Where to Watch

Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao will play each other on Sunday, Aug. 23 at 12:30 p.m. EDT at the San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao, Spain. You can watch a live game stream here.

Prediction

This is a really big game for Barcelona, even if it is on the road. It won't be easy winning without Neymar on the field. Athletic Bilbao wants to prove to everyone that 4-0 beat down was no fluke. If Barcelona can just get out of Bilbao with a point, that would still be average. For the first time in a long time, the pressure is more on Barcelona's opponent.

Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao tie, 2-2.

Follow Damon Salvadore on Twitter @DamonSalvadore1