Athletic Bilbao has been in high spirits ever since Marcelino took charge of the club according to Marca.
The Asturian has proven a breath of fresh air, injecting enthusiasm into a club that had been middling along, capped by last night’s victory over Real Madrid.
Athletic’s supporters can already notice the changes Marcelino has made to the squad are beginning to crystallise on the pitch, his method paying dividends.
Inside the offices of San Mames, his professionalism is said to really stand out, with the Asturian implementing almost a pre-season mentality in his first weeks in charge. He’s taking the time to speak with each player individually, to get to know them.
This was evidenced clearly in the 2-1 defeat of Los Blancos, a result that put Athletic into the final of the Supercopa de Espana against Barcelona on Sunday.
For Marcelino, however, it’s simply the first step on a long road to restore Athletic to one of the heavyweights of the Spanish game, abandoning mid-table.
“We’re trying to install an idea,” Marcelino said post-game. “I’m not a magician, but someone taking advantage of previous work.
The idea of the game prevails over the result. If we’re able to compete at the same level and consider the result as secondary we’ll become a great team.”
