Valverde: Second goal finished us

Athletic Bilbao boss Ernesto Valverde admitted Las Palmas' second goal was a body blow for his side from which they could not recover.

The 10-man Basque side lost 3-1 to Las Palmas at Estadio de Gran Canaria on Monday night but Valverde highlighted Momo's second goal for Los Amarillos five minutes after half time as being the decisive moment in the match.

"The second goal did us a lot of damage and we never really recovered from it," said the 52-year-old after the match.

"We started the game the better side, I think, but then they made some adjustments and improved – the goals coming just before and just after the break were massive moments in the match.

"We tried to then press high to get back into the game and maybe we were a little unlucky, but had we not have fallen two goals behind I am convinced we would have taken something from the game."

Athletic then had Aritz Aduriz sent-off for a second yellow while Raul Garcia now also faces suspension for a culmination of yellow cards, losses which Valverde admitted would be 'significant' for his side.

Tags Ernesto Valverde
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