‘Every minor detail – execute them’: The striker’s path from injury table to scoring with Athletic
Thehe initial occasion the Spanish forward competed in English soil, an teenage playing for Athletic Bilbao B against German opponents at Adams Park in September 2015, he scored. During his subsequent match he appeared in British turf, against Sunderland weeks after, he scored. Another occasion, against the Citizens six weeks after that, well, he repeated the feat. Upon his comeback to the northwest to take on Manchester United at the sports complex in that year, he scored again. It was a superb volley, also. “Actually,” he states, “it’s a top-class goal I’ve netted.” Thus the club did what they had to do: they substituted him.
“I was furious,” the forward admits, before breaking into laughter. “Probably there’s a recording. Our match against United and I was pretty good. They didn’t let me play the second half: my contract wasn’t finalized my contract, I kept finding the net, many stories circulated, it’s typical. No confirmation on Newcastle being interested, but I recall seeing about the Red Devils, standard transfer gossip. I’m not certain the validity, but even if they had called, I would have wanted to stay at the club. I’m fortunate to be here.”
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At Lezama, Bilbao, the day’s first practice is about to start; after it, the short journey to Loiu airport and another trip to England, now to play Newcastle in the Champions League on Wednesday. Mentioning that phrase lights him up. This is proving a tough year for the team, due in part to the demands of competing at this level. Beaten in added time in the weekend clash, they have won only one of their recent league fixtures and fallen to the Gunners and Borussia Dortmund in European competition. Yet, consider the broader view, the big nights he has lived and upcoming events, and he feels a calm gratitude from him.
In the three years since he had returned to the club, Guruzeta has been a Europa League semi-finalist, stopped at the gates a domestic final by the English giants, and has boarded a decades-old barge along the Nervión river surrounded by a huge crowd after winning the Copa del Rey, the team’s initial silverware in four decades. Now he is Athletic’s top scorer in the UCL, where they are countercultural and returning after absence in ten years. “I never imagined this,” he says.
The player believed it difficult enough just to make the first team and his assessment was correct. Born to the ex-La Real star the former professional and a season ticket holder at the team he now opposes, the forward is from the Antiguoko academy, the San Sebastián club that nurtured the Arsenal manager, Xabi Alonso and the tactician. He signed for Athletic at his teens but after his first-team bow in the 2018 season, he experienced a ACL injury, being released, a drop in category and a return before he could earn his place, coming back aged 26 to experience the peak of the club’s history.
“You go into the academy thinking you won’t reach the top level but every phase you progress through you’re persisting and you can observe the approach. You get there but … you’re sent away.” He played six, nine, five, one, four and 20 minutes in half a dozen appearances between his bow and that period. “Subsequently I returned to the filial [Bilbao Athletic, the Under-23s]. Five, six games with them and I tear my cruciate.
“It was a huge blow but I look back on it as a beneficial experience because it shifted the perspective. Recovering from a long-term injury is hard, but it’s beneficial. You develop habits you didn’t have. It’s not that you don’t look after yourself, but I would go to training and then head home, typical youth behavior. At Lezama, facilities are comprehensive, so take full advantage. Training, prehab. Strength training. With hip imbalance, work on that. If your ankles are a 10, improve it more. Every small aspect: do them.
“At the top level you’re going to face physical challenges who have been in battles repeatedly. Extremely powerful. I look at photos of me before: my physique was slight. Thus incidents occur. Present-day images and the improvement is clear. Recovery revealed that. Sessions end, but additional work remains. Teammates are set, really ready; you have to be too.”
You also have to play. He left upset in the pandemic season, at 23 years old, joining the second tier. At Sabadell in that season, he netted three goals in 40 games. With Amorebieta in the latter part of the season, the goals started to flow. “Many experience this: loans, terminated contracts. If you turn it round, dedication, confidence, and should the time come they need someone in your position, a return could happen. Preparation is key. Upon the recall, an aspiration fulfilled. To then win the Copa del Rey, compete continentally, and qualify for Europe’s top tier … pfff.”
Understandably he remarks this is to be enjoyed. Especially after the previous season which, sometimes, was focused on persistence. From top scorer with 16 in 2023-24, his output dropped to seven in {15 games more|additional matches|
