‘All those little things – make sure you do them’: Guruzeta’s journey from injury table to scoring with the Basque club
Whenhe first time the Athletic striker featured in the UK, an young playing for the youth squad against Bundesliga youth at Wycombe’s stadium in September 2015, he found the net. During his subsequent match he took the field in England, against the English side two months later, he scored. Another occasion, against Pep Guardiola’s team six weeks after that, well, he repeated the feat. As he revisited to the city to play against the Red Devils at the sports complex in that year, he did it once more. A spectacular strike, as well. “Actually,” he says, “it’s a top-class goal I’ve ever scored.” So Athletic did what they had to do: they substituted him.
“I got well angry,” the Athletic striker says, then chuckling. “There must be a video somewhere. We went to play United and I was in fine form. They didn’t let me play the second half: I hadn’t yet signed agreement, goals were flowing, many stories circulated, as you’d expect. I’m unsure regarding the Magpies’ pursuit, but I came across reports about Man United, the usual talk. I’m not certain if it was accurate, but supposing an offer came, I’d have chosen to stay at Athletic. It’s a privilege.”
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At the facility, the Basque Country, the day’s first practice is about to start; following that, the quick travel to the airport and another trip to the UK, now to play Newcastle in the UCL on the upcoming match. Uttering the name makes Guruzeta smile. This is proving a tough year for the club, due in part to the pressures of their participation. Losing in stoppage time in the local rivalry, they have managed just one win of their past eight league games and lost against Arsenal and Dortmund in European competition. But, 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 three years since he had rejoined the team, Gorka has been a semi-final participant, prevented from reaching a domestic final by the English giants, and has boarded a decades-old barge up the Nervión estuary accompanied by a huge crowd after lifting the trophy, the team’s initial silverware in four decades. Currently he stands as Athletic’s top scorer in the European competition, where they are distinctive and returning after absence in ten years. “I never imagined this,” he states.
The player believed it hard enough just to break into the senior squad and that proved true. The son of the former Real Sociedad player Xabi Guruzeta and a dedicated fan at the club that are now his rivals, the forward is from the Antiguoko academy, the Donostiarra team that nurtured Mikel Arteta, the legendary midfielder and the tactician. He signed for Athletic at seventeen but after his first-team bow in the 2018 season, he experienced a serious knee problem, being released, a drop in category and a recall before he could finally secure an opportunity, making his comeback to experience the peak of their lives.
“Entering the youth system thinking you won’t reach the senior squad but every phase you go through you’re remaining and you can notice the proximity. You get there but … departure is necessary.” He featured briefly in six matches in six games between his debut and that period. “Subsequently I returned to the filial [Bilbao Athletic, the Under-23s]. A few matches at that level and my knee gave way.
“A severe disappointment but I reflect on it as something positive because it shifted the way I saw things. Healing from a serious ailment is hard, but it’s beneficial. You develop habits you didn’t have. It’s not that you don’t look after yourself, but I attended practice and then head home, as a youngster does. At the complex, all resources are available, so take full advantage. Practice, prevention. Strength training. If your hips aren’t balanced, correct it. With decent ankle function, make it a 12 or a 14. All the minor details: perform them.
“At the top level you’re going to crash into players who have been in battles countless occasions. Extremely powerful. Seeing previous pictures: I had slender legs. Thus incidents occur. Present-day images and the change is dramatic. Injury made me see that. Sessions end, but additional work remains. Peers are prepared, really ready; you have to be too.”
Minutes are crucial. The striker moved in tears in the pandemic season, aged 23, joining the second tier. At Sabadell in the 20-21 campaign, he got three strikes in forty appearances. At Amorebieta in the latter part of the season, the he found his form. “Players go through it: temporary moves, ended deals. With a turnaround, work, believe, and should the time come a vacancy arises where you play, they might come back for you. Preparation is key. When they decided to call again, it was a dream come true. To then win the Copa del Rey, European football, and make the UCL … pfff.”
Understandably he remarks this is to be enjoyed. All the more so after the prior campaign which, on occasions, was about endurance. From top scorer with a high tally, his output dropped to seven in {15 games more|additional matches|
