‘Every minor detail – execute them’: Guruzeta’s road from gurney to success with Athletic Bilbao

Thehe first time the Spanish forward featured in the UK, an 18-year-old playing for the youth squad against German opponents at Adams Park in September 2015, he hit the target. On his next visit he appeared in the country, against the English side two months later, he scored. The third time, against Manchester City six weeks after that, indeed, he repeated the feat. Upon his comeback to the northwest to play against the Red Devils at Leigh Sports Village in 2017, he scored again. A spectacular strike, as well. “Truly,” he remarks, “it’s a top-class goal I’ve netted.” So Athletic did what was necessary: they substituted him.

“I got well angry,” the forward says, and then he starts laughing. “There must be a video somewhere. Our match against United and I was in fine form. I wasn’t allowed to feature the latter period: my contract wasn’t finalized agreement, I kept finding the net, many stories circulated, it’s typical. I don’t know about interest from Newcastle, but I recall seeing about Man United, the typical thing. It’s unclear the validity, but supposing an offer came, my desire was to remain at Athletic. It’s a privilege.”

La Real relieve strain with extraordinary derby triumph

At the facility, the Basque Country, the morning session is set to begin; following that, the brief trip to Loiu and another flight to the UK, on this occasion to play Newcastle in the Champions League on the upcoming match. Mentioning that phrase lights him up. This is proving a challenging campaign for Athletic, partially owing to the pressures of being here. Losing in stoppage time in the derby on Saturday, they have secured just a single victory of their last eight matches and lost against Arsenal and the German side in Europe. Yet, look at the overall situation, the big nights he has lived and those that lie ahead, and he feels a calm gratitude from him.

In the the period since he had returned to the club, the striker has been a semi-final participant, stopped at the gates a domestic final by Manchester United, and has boarded a decades-old barge up the Nervión estuary surrounded by countless supporters after securing the Spanish cup, the team’s initial silverware in four decades. Currently he stands as the top goal-getter in the UCL, where they are distinctive and making their first appearance in a long period. “This was beyond my dreams,” he states.

Guruzeta thought it difficult enough just to break into the senior squad and his assessment was correct. As the child of the one-time rival player the former professional and a dedicated fan at the team he now opposes, Gorka is from the Antiguoko academy, the San Sebastián club that produced the coach, the former star and the tactician. His move to Athletic came at his teens but after his first-team bow in the 2018 season, he suffered a ACL injury, the cut, a demotion and a call back before he could truly get a chance, coming back aged 26 to experience the peak of the club’s history.

“You go into the academy not expecting to reach the top level but with every stage you go through you’re persisting and you can observe the approach. You get there but … departure is necessary.” He featured briefly in six matches in half a dozen appearances between his first game and February 2019. “Then I was sent to the filial [Bilbao Athletic, the Under-23s]. Five, six games with them and I suffered the ACL injury.

“A massive setback but I look back on it as a beneficial experience because it forced me to alter the way I saw things. Recovering from a long-term injury is hard, but it aids growth. You cultivate routines previously lacking. Previously I was casual, but I would go to training and then go home, as a youngster does. At Lezama, all resources are available, so do everything. Work, precaution. Hit the weights. Should your hips be uneven, address that. If your ankles are a 10, improve it more. Every small aspect: execute them.

“At the top level you’re going to crash into players who have experienced contact 200,000 times. They’re so strong. Reviewing old images: my legs are chicken legs. So what happens, happens. Current photos and the change is dramatic. Injury made me see that. Practice concludes, but further effort is needed. Teammates are set, really ready; you have to be too.”

You also have to play. He left emotionally in the pandemic season, in his early twenties, moving to a lower level. With Sabadell in the 20-21 campaign, he scored three times in numerous matches. With Amorebieta in the latter part of the season, the goals started to flow. “Many experience this: loans, terminated contracts. Should you reverse it, work, believe, and when eventually they need someone for your role, a return could happen. You have to be ready. Upon the recall, a fantasy realized. The trophy success, European football, and reach the Champions League … pfff.”

Little surprise he states this is to be enjoyed. All the more so after the previous season which, on occasions, was about endurance. From top scorer with 16 in 2023-24, his output dropped to seven in {15 games more|additional matches|