The first time the Athletic striker competed in England, an teenage playing for the youth squad against German opponents at the English ground in fall 2015, he scored. On his next visit he appeared in the country, against the English side two months later, he converted. His third outing, against Pep Guardiola’s team six weeks after that, well, he did it once more. As he revisited to the city to play against the Red Devils at Leigh’s ground in 2017, he found the back of the net. It was a superb volley, also. “In fact,” he states, “it’s a top-class goal I’ve netted.” Thus the club did their duty: they substituted him.
“I got well angry,” the attacker admits, and then he starts laughing. “Probably there’s a recording. Our match against United and I performed well. They didn’t let me play the latter period: I hadn’t yet signed agreement, I kept finding the net, there were lots of rumours, it’s typical. I’m unsure regarding the Magpies’ pursuit, but I recall seeing about Man United, standard transfer gossip. I have no idea if it was accurate, but had they contacted me, I’d have chosen to stay at the club. It’s a privilege.”
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At the training ground, Bilbao, the early training is ready to commence; after it, the brief trip to Loiu and another flight to England, this time to play Newcastle in the UCL on the upcoming match. Mentioning that phrase lights him up. It’s turning out to be a tough year for Athletic, due in part to the requirements of being here. Defeated late on in the weekend clash, they have won only one of their past eight league games and fallen to the Gunners and the German side in the continental stage. Yet, look at the overall situation, the major occasions he’s experienced and those that lie ahead, and there’s a kind of quiet appreciation within him.
In the 36 months since he had rejoined the team, the striker has been a Europa League semi-finalist, prevented from reaching a final at home by Manchester United, and has ridden an historic vessel along the Nervión river accompanied by countless supporters after securing the Spanish cup, the team’s initial silverware in a long wait. Currently he stands as the top goal-getter in the UCL, where they are distinctive and debuting in a decade. “I couldn’t have pictured this,” he states.
He considered it difficult enough just to make the first team and that proved true. As the child of the ex-La Real star Xabi Guruzeta and a season ticket holder at the club that are now his rivals, Guruzeta is a graduate of Antiguoko, the San Sebastián club that nurtured Mikel Arteta, the legendary midfielder and Andoni Iraola. He joined Athletic at seventeen but after making his senior debut in August 2018, he suffered a serious knee problem, dropped, a relegation and a call back before he could truly get a chance, making his comeback to enjoy the highlights of his career.
“Entering the youth system thinking you won’t reach the senior squad but every phase you go through you’re persisting and you can see it getting closer. You get there but … you have to leave.” He had limited game time in a handful of matches between his bow 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 severe disappointment but I reflect on it as a beneficial experience because it made me change the perspective. The rehabilitation process is hard, but it’s beneficial. You cultivate routines you didn’t have. It’s not that you don’t look after yourself, but I did the sessions and then go home, as a youngster does. At Lezama, facilities are comprehensive, so do everything. Practice, prevention. Strength training. If your hips aren’t balanced, correct it. If your ankles are a 10, make it a 12 or a 14. All those ‘silly things’: execute them.
“In the first team you’re going to collide with opponents who have been in battles repeatedly. They’re so strong. I look at photos of me before: my physique was slight. Injuries are inevitable. Current photos and the change is dramatic. Recovery revealed that. Practice concludes, but further effort is needed. Everyone else is ready, really ready; you have to be too.”
Minutes are crucial. The striker moved upset in the pandemic season, aged 23, moving to a lower level. At Sabadell in that season, he got three strikes in 40 games. With Amorebieta in the following period, the goals started to flow. “Many experience this: temporary moves, ended deals. With a turnaround, work, believe, and when eventually a vacancy arises where you play, a return could happen. Preparation is key. Upon the recall, an aspiration fulfilled. The trophy success, European football, and reach the Champions League … pfff.”
Understandably he remarks this is to be enjoyed. All the more so after the previous season which, at times, was about endurance. From top scorer with 16 in 2023-24, his output dropped to seven in {15 games more|additional matches|
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