It is the fairytale finish to the season that people cannot avoid talking about. While manager Ernesto Valverde has pointed out that if they do not win their quarter-finals and semi-finals, there is little point in talking about the final, the media and fans cannot resist discussing the prospect of Athletic Club playing it in their home stadium.
If Athletic Club are to lift the trophy, they must first get past Rangers, and should they make the final, there is a good chance they will come up against either of two under pressure managers in Ange Postecoglou or Ruben Amorim at Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United respectively. No doubt people are lining up their proposition bets for the winner already, and you can read more about online casinos site UK to do so.
Beyond a side desperate to make that fairytale happen, what can fans expect from Los Leones? Athletic are coming fresh off the back of ending a 40-year drought for a major trophy, after they lifted the Copa del Rey in dramatic fashion last April. Beating Barcelona and Atletico Madrid on the way, Valverde’s men needed penalties to ensure maximum tension against RCD Mallorca in the final. When they returned to Bilbao. More than a million fans took to the streets to see the trophy parade.
Led up front by Nico and Inaki Williams on the flanks, Athletic are much more physical and direct than the majority of Spanish sides, but with Valverde in charge, have a variety of tools at their disposal to unlock opponents. Perhaps the sharpest is Oihan Sancet – an imposing figure behind the striker, who drifts into space and has been lethal in front of goal this year.
At the back, Athletic possess one of the best central defenders in Spain in Dani Vivian, who has all the pace and power required of a modern centre-back, as well as competitive edge that tends to cow forwards – most notably Kylian Mbappe in November. Either of Aitor Paredes or Yeray next to him provide strong options next to him.
In midfield, Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta is a more controlling influence on the ball, while the likes of Mikel Vesga and Mikel Jauregizar eat up ground so the opposition don’t have a moment of peace on the ball. If there is perhaps a question mark in their side, it is over the full-backs. Andoni Gorosabel and veteran captain Oscar de Marcos operate on the right, but neither are standouts defensively. On the other side, the experienced Yuri Berchiche is as wily as they come, but has lost a yard of pace that he had when he moved to Paris Saint-Germain.
