Athletic Bilbao boss Ernesto Valverde believes that "consistency" will be key to his side's hopes of finishing in the top four in La Liga this season.

The Basque outfit enter the winter break in fourth spot in the table having won 10 of their 17 matches this season, but Valverde has called for calm ahead of the second part of the campaign.

"I am always optimistic about a challenge like this and I believed we would be up there, but maybe not in the fight this much so soon," he told reporters at a press conference.

"The team is confident and has done what it has done with belief in their ability. We will defend the Champions League position, but 66 points were needed last year to secure it and we will need to improve our total from last year by more than 50%.

"It is possible [to finish in fourth], but to discuss it now, it is an objective that is still far away. To qualify for this, the team must have consistency throughout the season, and up until Christmas, perfect."

Bilbao were 2-1 winners over Rayo Vallecano at the weekend.