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Iñaki Williams scored the winning goal when Athletic Bilbao beat Barcelona 3-2 in extra time to win the Spanish Super Cup
Iñaki Williams remembers the days when he saw young people train at the famous Lezama academy of Athletic Bilbao and dreamed of representing the club he loved.
Now the forward, whose break at Lezama came when he was 18, has the opportunity to help his childhood team win the Copa del Rey twice in the same number of weeks.
“For anyone born in or around Bilbao, the main dream that children have is to end up playing for Athletic Bilbao,” says the 26-year-old.
“I have been very fortunate because this dream has come true. Now I have the chance to win two titles, to make Athletic Bilbao champions.”
The club’s last success in the competition came in 1984 as part of a domestic double, but they can end that 37-year wait on Saturday against neighboring Basque Real Sociedad.
That will be the 2019-20 final, which was delayed 12 months due to the coronavirus pandemic in the hope that fans could attend, although it will now take place in Seville without supporters.
Athletic will then face Barcelona on April 17 in this season’s final, after having already beaten the Catalan giants to win the Super Cup in January.
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What underpins everything that Athletic Bilbao does is a philosophy that dates back more than 100 years and that sees them aligning only players who have passed through the academies of the clubs in the Basque Country.
You can limit your pool of available talent, but Athletic is one of only three clubs, along with Barcelona and Real Madrid, to have never dropped from Spain’s top flight and won eight La Liga titles in that time.
Following Marcelino’s appointment as coach in January, Athletic beat both teams to win the Super Cup and, despite not being the Basque himself, the coach believes that the club’s methods remain sustainable.
“Is it incompatible with the 21st century? I would say no, because the principles are far ahead of different situations,” he says.
“When you really trust and believe in the beginning it is very authentic, and the philosophy and even the way of living and behaving is very strong. It is very responsible, respectable and even very viable. I think it is fantastic.”
Sports director Rafael Alkorta says that Bilbao’s main market “is our own home.”
They rarely venture into the transfer market and the arrival of Pamplona winger Alex Berenguer from Napoli in October was the club’s first signing in 20 months.
Instead, Athletic has invested heavily in its academy, in addition to building a new San Mamés stadium with 53,000 seats in 2013.
Finding and nurturing talent is key and the club has a comprehensive exploration network that includes agreements with around 160 local teams.
“We try to help them as much as possible with our trainers and specialized people to give training courses or workshops,” explains Alkorta. “What we are trying to build with this is that children from a very young age just want to play with us.
“These are young boys who were born in the Basque Country, young boys who have been trained from a very young age in our environment.
“There are many people who support us in this effort because they will go to school every day, they will see the children play, they will go to all the towns and villages around us to detect talents, it is a job that requires a lot of hours and many reports” .
Asier Villalibre plays the trumpet while Athletic Bilbao celebrates after beating Barcelona in the Super Cup
One challenge the club faces is avoiding interest in its best players, but winning trophies helps.
“Loyalty is one of the main elements of our work and effort, so that children from a very young age understand that the main objective is to reach the top team,” says Alkorta.
“They must also understand that this is where they will have the best chance of reaching the first division of Spain and it is something we all work on every day, giving many presentations, providing a lot of development to the coaches.”
Alkorta, the former defender of Spain who played for Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid, adds: “Trophies are important for us to believe in what we are doing and for children to see with this approach that trophies can be won and he can beat Barcelona and Real Madrid.
“From our point of view – trophies, finals, playing in Europe from time to time – it gives us support and we are excited that we can all continue to believe in our philosophy.”
Athletic Bilbao celebrates the Copa del Rey at its San Mamés stadium, before the coronavirus pandemic prevented the entry of fans.
Williams grew up dreaming of playing in ‘La Catedral’, the club’s original San Mamés stadium, having been born in Bilbao shortly after his parents arrived from Ghana.
The striker, with a club-record streak of 185 straight La Liga games, has talked about spending his entire career with Athletic and is proud to see the city dressed in red and white in preparation for their upcoming finals.
“Marcelino was deeply impressed by the fact that we are not only a team, but also a family,” says Williams, whose 18-year-old brother Nico is also with the club.
“We try to avoid any problems on the field or in the training rooms. They are friends more than partners.
“It is something that they teach you from a very young age and it makes us feel very excited to wear the Athletic Bilbao crest on your shirt.”
Marcelino, who won the Copa del Rey in 2019 with Valencia, feels that unity makes his team dangerous, although he would like to improve his position of ninth in La Liga.
“We are talking about a unique locker room where people are united, everyone works hard and everyone is part of the organization,” says Marcelino.
“Many of them have known each other since they were children, they have progressed over the years and their relatives know each other, because they went through different teams in Lezama, the academy.
“All the players have that feeling of belonging, that they belong to the club they came to many years ago and now they are enjoying the dreams they had as children.”
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Source: bbc.com
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