images


AUGUST

Spanish Super Cup Final 1st Leg
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Garcia 40)
Barcelona 0

I was without several players here and we just managed to sneak it. Both sides had a man sent-off too.

--

Deportivo La Coruna 0
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garmendia 14, Hondo N'Dongo 40, Alfredo 79)

A decent start to the league campaign.

--

UEFA European Super Cup
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Herrera 36)
Arsenal 1 (Gajdek 38)
(AET - Athletic Bilbao win 4-2 on penalties)

How Arsenal got this to a penalty shoot out is beyond me as we battered them but just couldnt get the winning goal.

--

LINEUPS

OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Barc1-0DavidAzpilicuetaHondo N'DongoGomezRuiz*GarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaGutierrezGarciaAlonso, Ayechu, Valcarcel
Dep3-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la Torre Garmendia*CidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaVinas, Gutierrez, Alfredo
****1-1DavidRuizValcarcelPalaciosDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaGutierrez, Vinas, Alfredo

--

SUMMARY

A quiet start to the new season as we hold a slight advantage going into the 2nd leg of the Spanish Super Cup and claimed the European version on penalties. Not much else to say really!!!

In the Champions League we have been drawn alongside Rosenborg, Bordeaux and Roma.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
GONTZAL RUIZ
View attachment 333744

--

images


SPAIN

Friendly
Spain 2 (Garcia 11, Herrera 19)
Ivory Coast 0

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Hondo N'Dongo (Barandiaran), Gomez, Granell (G.Ruiz), Santano (M.Ruiz), Cidoncha, Izurza (Jamelao), Perez Villarroya (Cano), Herrera, Garcia* (Alfredo)

 
images


SEPTEMBER

Spanish Super Cup Final 2nd Leg
Barcelona 2 (Redaelli 57, Florescu 84)
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Herrera 29, Hondo N'Dongo 89)
(Athletic Bilbao win 3-2 on aggregate)

Our late equaliser meant that we can still go through the entire campaign unbeaten. Once again in the Redaelli v Herrera battle it was even.

--

Sporting Gijon 0
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Izurza 26, Garcia 35, 45)


We only had 3 shots on target but every one went in!

--

UEFA Champions League Group B
Athletic Bilbao 6 (Gutierrez 6, Ordonez Lopez 29, 45, Aglen og66, Alfredo 68, Rojo 86)
Rosenborg 0

I fielded a backup side here and we got a very nice win.

--

Athletic Bilbao 5 (Garcia 4, 31, 38, 71pen, Herrera 7)

Tenerife 0

Fermin Garcia was immense here as he scored 4 and assisted the other.

--

Granada 0
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Hondo N'Dongo 64)


--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (De la Torre 17, Gomez 32, Hondo N'Dongo 73)

Malaga 0

3 of my 4 defenders got on the scoresheet here which is a rarity.

--

LINEUPS

OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Barc2-2DavidRuizHondo N'DongoValcarcelDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerrera*GarciaVinas, Alonso, Gutierrez
Gijon3-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 2Garmendia, Gutierrez, Alonso
Rose6-0DavidAzpilicuetaPalaciosValcarcelRafaelGarmendiaVinasRojoGutierrezOrdonez Lopez* 2AlfredoToni, Ayechu, Alonso
Ten5-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 4-
Gran1-0DavidRuizHondo N'Dongo*GomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaGutierrez
Malaga3-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la Torre*SantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaAlfredo, Gutierrez, Garmendia

--

SUMMARY

This was a solid month as we drew with Barcelona to win the Super Cup and then won the next 5 games, keeping a clean sheet in them all.

Izurza and Ruiz have done quite well so far and are handling the pressures of regular first team football at the highest level. I am trying to get Juame Gutierrez more game time too as he is developing fast.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
FERMIN GARCIA
View attachment 333731

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 333730

--

images


SPAIN

FIFA World Cup Quals Group 9
Spain 3 (Perez Villarroya 23, Garcia 56, 74pen)
Estonia 0

Lineup - David, De la Torre (G.Ruiz), Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez, Granell, M.Ruiz, Cidoncha, Izurza (Jamelao), Perez Villarroya, Herrera (Gutierrez), Garcia*

Herrera and Perez Villarroya had goals disallowed here. I gave Juame Gutierrez his international debut as we have a lack of quality left wingers.

--

FIFA World Cup Quals Group 9
Spain 4 (Izurza 9, Garcia 21, 65, 79)
Switzerland 1 (Kojadinovic 63)

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Hondo N'Dongo. Gomez, Granell, Santano (M.Ruiz), Cidoncha, Izurza, Perez Villarroya (Gutierrez), Herrera, Garcia*
 
images


OCTOBER

UEFA Champions League Group B
Roma 2 (Di Caro 16, Lamela 77)
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 2, 61pen, Herrera 19)

We got lucky here as Roma were far better than us and had a goal disallowed.

--

Real Betis 0
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Garcia 20, Perez Villarroya 22)

--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Perez Villarroya 53, 90, Hondo N'Dongo 61)
Real Madrid 2 (Brown 7, 71)

A fantastic result this. A draw would have been a fair result but Perez Villarroya struck in stoppage time for us to claim the points.

--

UEFA Champions League Group B
Athletic Bilbao 6 (Ruffier og5, Muniain 7, 67pen, 88, Garmendia 34, Alfredo 46)
Bordeaux 3 (Fernando 75, 79, Poirot 90)

An entertaining match as there was 9 goals and a sending off. My old keeper, Stephane Ruffier, scored the first for us here. He is still playing at 39!!!

--

Espanyol 1 (Filippi 28)

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 5, 20, 56pen)


Fermin Garcia is having a much better season than last and his hat-trick here shows that.

--

Copa del Rey 4th Round 1st Leg
Extremadura 1 (Lopez 51)
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Alfredo 57, Ayechu 77)

Sure we won but we should have scored much, much, much more!

--

LINEUPS
OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Roma3-2DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 2Ordonez Lopez, Alonso, Gutierrez
Real Betis2-0DavidAzpilicuetaHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaGutierrezPerez Villarroya*Ordonez LopezGarciaVinas, Rafael, Ayechu
Real M.3-2DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez Villarroya* 2HerreraGarciaGarmendia, Alonso, Alfredo
Bord6-3DavidAlonsoPalacios ValcarcelRafaelGarmendiaVinasMuniain* 3IbanezOrdonez Lopez AlfredoGutierrez, Ayechu
Esp3-1DavidRuizHondo N'DongoValcarcelDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 3Ordonez Lopez, Gutierrez, Vinas
Ext2-1DavidAzpilicuetaPalaciosValcarcelRafaelGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanez*GutierrezAlfredoAyechu, Sanchez, Damia

--

SUMMARY

This was a very successful month as we won all our games including a win over Real Madrid. The only worrying thing is that our defence has been leaking a few too many goals.

Next month we have a kind fixture list so I am hoping that we can step up a gear and bang in a lot of goals.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
GASPAR PEREZ VILLARROYA
View attachment 333060

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 333061

--

images


SPAIN

FIFA World Cup Quals Group 9
Belarus 0
Spain 2 (Perez Villarroya 53,70 )

Lineup - David, De la Torre (G.Ruiz), Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez, Granell, M.Ruiz, Cidoncha, Izurza (Muniain), Perez Villarroya*, Herrera, Garcia (Alfredo)

This win secures qualification with a game to spare. This was also my 100th game in charge of Spain.

--

FIFA World Cup Quals Group 9
Poland 1 (Majka 36)
Spain 1 (Herrera 76)

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Hondo N'Dongo (G.Ruiz), Gomez, Granell, Santano (M.Ruiz), Cidoncha, Izurza, Cano, Herrera, Garcia (Alfredo)

This was our final group game and I am annoyed that we drew as we had a 100% record before this match.
View attachment 333091
 
images


NOVEMBER

Almeria 0
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Muniain 90)

We struggled a bit here but just got the win when Muniain struck in the 4th minute of stoppage time.

--

UEFA Champions League Group B
Bordeaux 2 (Poirot 46, Pinto 83pen)
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Valcarcel 53, Ayechu 79)

--

Athletic Bilbao 1 (Cidoncha 85)
Atletico Madrid 0

A decent win and it is always nice to see Cidoncha score. David got a rare man of the match award. Garcia got injured and is out for a couple of months.

--

Copa del Rey 4th Round 2nd Leg

Athletic Bilbao 6 (Muniain 14, 26, 50, Valcarcel 37, Gutierrez 45, Palacios 89)
Extremadura 0
(Athletic Bilbao win 8-1 on aggregate)

I expected this margin of victory in the first leg but I am happy enough with it here.

--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Alfredo 28, Santano 59, Herrera 66)
Leganes 0

Izurza set up all 3 goals here. We should have won by a lot more.

--

UEFA Champions League Group B
Rosenborg 0
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Gutierrez 17, 24, 86)

This win secures qualification. Muniain had a goal disallowed.

--

Gimnastic 0
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Martin og24, Perez Villarroya 53, Herrera 72)

--

LINEUPS

OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Alm1-0DavidRuizHondo N'Dongo*GomezRafaelSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaMuniain, Alfredo, Garmendia
Bord2-2DavidAlonsoValcarcelSanchezBergaraGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanezGutierrezAlfredoToni, Ayechu
At M.1-0David*RuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaAlfredo, Ordonez Lopez, Muniain
Ext6-0DavidAzpilicuetaValcarcelPalaciosRafaelGarmendiaVinasMuniain* 3IbanezGutierrezAyechuLuis Manuel, M.Bilbao
Leg3-0DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantano*CidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraAlfredoAyechu, Ibanez, Rafael
Rose2-0DavidAzpilicuetaValcarcelGomezRafaelGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanezGutierrez* 3AyechuAlonso, Ordonez Lopez
Gim3-0DavidRuizValcarcel*GomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredoGarmendia, Ayechu, Rafael


--

SUMMARY

This month saw us do very well. Our defence was solid and strong and David has kept a clean sheet in each of his last 5 matches. Going forward we did ok but with the constant chopping and changing it was difficult to get any sort of consistancy - that said Jaume Gutierrez was impressive.

On the downside Fermin Garcia and Oceano Hondo N'Dongo suffered long term injuries so Ander Valcarcel and Alfredo will get an extended run in the side.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
ANDER VALCARCEL
View attachment 333015

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 333014

--

images


SPAIN

Friendly
Spain 4 (Perez Villarroya 9, Alfredo 29, 39, 66)
Armenia 0

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Barandiaran (Valcarcel), Gomez, Granell (G.Ruiz), Santano (M.Ruiz), Cidoncha, Izurza (Muniain), Perez Villarroya, Herrera, Alfredo* (Barreto)

I gave my own centre half, Ander Valcarcel, his debut and also Argentinian striker Alan Barreto. Hondo N'Dongo got injured before the match and is out for a couple of months.

--

Friendly
Serbia 2 (Stajkovac 34, Ilic 90)
Spain 2 (M.Ruiz 76, Barreto 81)

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Barandiaran (Albert), Gomez, Granell (G.Ruiz), Santano (M.Ruiz*), Cidoncha, Izurza (Muniain), Perez Villarroya (Cano), Herrera, Alfredo (Barreto)
 
images


DECEMBER

UEFA Champions League Group B
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Gutierrez 23, Sanchez 67)
Roma 2 (Di Caro 68, Curcic 87)

I am pretty disappointed that we threw away a 2 goal lead but I had my backups out there and had 2 players taken off injured.

--

Athletic Bilbao 2 (Herrera 30, Perez Villarroya 81)
Real Valladolid 0

--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Santano 28pen, Alfredo 42, Herrera 56)
Real Sociedad 0

A nice and easy derby victory.

--

Sevilla 1 (Sesma 81pen)
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Gomez 20, Izurza 44, Ayechu 77)

Another fine victory and performance. Now we head for the World Club Cup!

--

FIFA World Club Cup SF
Monterrey 0
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Ayechu 76)

We struggled here but just managed to squeak through.

--

FIFA World Club Cup Final
Athletic Bilbao 6 (Santano 27, 64, Herrera 30, Izurza 45, Perez Villarroya 62, Ayechu 89)
Estudiantes (LP) 0

If only every cup final was this easy!!

--

LINEUPS

OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Roma2-2DavidAlonsoValcarcelSanchezRafaelGarmendiaOrdonez LopezMuniainIbanezGutierrezAyechuToni, Eric, Zubizarreta
R. Val2-0DavidRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoVinasIzurzaPerez Villarroya*HerreraAlfredoAyechu, Muniain
R. Soc3-0DavidRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantano*CidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredoAyechu, Muniain
Sev3-1DavidRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez Villarroya*HerreraAlfredoAyechu, Garmendia
Mont1-0DavidAlonsoValcarcel*PalaciosRafaelGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanezGutierrezAyechuOrdonez Lopez, Azpilicueta
Est6-0DavidRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantano* 2CidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredoAyechu, Azpilicueta, Muniain

--

SUMMARY

December is always a busy month (except not nearly as busy as January) and we coped quite well and managed to remain unbeaten. As expected we also won the FIFA World Club Cup as we defeated Monterrey in a close match and then we followed that by thrashing Estudiantes in the final.

In the Champions League we have been drawn against Liverpool while in the World Cup my Spain side will face the Czech. Republic, USA and Egypt.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
ANDONI SANTANO
View attachment 332964

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 332963
 
images


JANUARY

Copa del Rey 5th Round 1st Leg
Espanyol 0
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Perez Villarroya 35, Herrera 66)

This should be a big enough winning margin to see us through.

--

Copa del Rey 5th Round 2nd Leg
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Ibanez 23)
Espanyol 1 (Filippi 60)
(Athletic Bilbao win 3-1 on aggregate)

Ordonez Lopez got injured and is out for almost all of the rest of the season.

--

Athletic Bilbao 4 (Palacios 8, Alfredo 22, 30, 48pen)
Rayo Vallecano 3 (Gian 2, Bodao 25, Renato 90)

3 goals conceded at home against this lot is not on but David got injured before the match and Ismael Bilbao came in so maybe that was the reason.

--

Copa del Rey QF 1st Leg
Barcelona 1 (Bustamante 75)

Athletic Bilbao 2 (Ibanez 77, Ayechu 83)

An excellent win. We fell behind late on but quickly levelled and then they had Bustamante sent off and Ayechu scored the winner.

--

Athletic Bilbao 4 (Romero og6, Garcia 14pen, Palacios 48, Muniain 61)
Valencia 1 (Berasaluce 45)

Fermin Garcia came back from injury here and managed to grab a goal.

--

Copa del Rey QF 2nd Leg
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Ibanez 33, Muniain 86)
Barcelona 2 (Redaelli 3, Osokin 89)
(Athletic Bilbao win 4-3 on aggregate)

I am pleased that we managed to edge out Barcelona and also remain unbeaten this season.

--

Athletic Bilbao 2 (Herrera 22, Muniain 90)
Deportivo La Coruna 0

More injury heartache here as Gaspar Perez Villarroya got injured and is out for 2-3 months.

--

Copa del Rey SF 1st Leg
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Garcia 60, Cidoncha 68)
Leganes 0

--

Real Sociedad 0
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Alfredo 88, 90)

--

LINEUPS
OPPRESGKRBCBCBLB CMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Esp2-0David*RuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredoAyechu
Esp1-1DavidAlonsoValcarcelPalaciosRafaelOrdonez LopezVinasMuniainIbanez*GutierrezAyechuDamia, Antonio
Rayo4-3I.BilbaoRuizPalaciosGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredo* 3Alonso, Ibanez, Gutierrez
Barc2-1I.BilbaoRuizPalaciosGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraAlfredoMuniain, Ayechu, Ibanez
Val4-1I.BilbaoRuizPalaciosGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez Villarroya*MuniainGarciaGutierrez, Garmendia, Ayechu
Barc2-2I.BilbaoAlonso*ValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoVinasIzurzaIbanezHerreraGarciaAlfredo, Muniain, Rafael
Dep2-0I.BilbaoRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerrera*GarciaIbanez, Muniain, Palacios
Leg2-0I.BilbaoAlonsoValcarcelPalaciosDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaIbanezMuniainGarcia*Rafael, Gutierrez, Garmendia
R. Soc2-0DavidRuizValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarciaAlfredo* 2, Ibanez, Garmendia

--

SUMMARY

9 games was played this month and we came through it unscathed. We are still top of the table having won all 19 of our league games and we also managed to knock out Barcelona in the cup and have one foot in the final after beating Leganes.

I did nothing in the transfer window as I am happy with the balance of my squad. In any case there is nobody out there I would even consider buying anyway!!!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
ALFREDO

View attachment 332955

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 332954
 
Last edited:
images


FEBRUARY

Copa del Rey SF 2nd Leg
Leganes 1 (Vazquez 89)
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Garmendia 8, Ibanez 27)
(Athletic Bilbao win 4-1 on aggregate)

We qualify for the final where Real Betis await. Alfredo got injured and is out for 5-6 weeks.

--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Santano 62, Muniain 73, Gomez 86)
Sporting Gijon 0

Yet another win but yet again I had injury problems as Valcarcel and Santano went off injured.

--

Barcelona 1 (Florescu 86)

Athletic Bilbao 1 (Garcia 90)

Our 100% record may be over but Garcia's last minute goal ensured that we are still unbeaten.

--

Tenerife 0

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 22, Izurza 25, Herrera 71)

--

Athletic Bilbao 2 (Valcarcel 23, Herrera 37)
Granada 0

This time it was Gontzal Ruiz's turn to get injured............

--

UEFA Champions League 1st Round 1st Leg
Liverpool 0
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Muniain 4, Herrera 30)

This is a very impressive victory and performance.

--

Malaga 1 (Mezzano 44)

Athletic Bilbao 6 (Garcia 1, 16, 45, Garmendia 36, 46, Ayechu 42)

Compared to recent seasons our goal tally seems to be lower but this helps and it was surprising as I was without my first 4 picks in the 3 AM positions!! (Herrera, Muniain, Izurza, GVP)

--

LINEUPS
OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Leg2-1DavidAlonsoPalaciosGomezRafaelGarmendia*VinasMuniainIbanezHerreraAlfredoAyechu, Damia, Lora
Gijon3-0DavidRuizValcarcelGomez*De la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarciaPalacios, Vinas, Ayechu
Barc1-1DavidRuiz*ValcarcelGomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonlchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarciaVinas, Gutierrez, Ibanez
Ten3-0DavidRuiz*ValcarcelGomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarciaVinas, Ayechu, Ibanez
Gran2-0DavidRuizValcarcel*GomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarciaAzpilicueta, Ayechu, Gutierrez
Liv2-0DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezDe la TorreGarmendiaCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerrera*GarciaAyechu, Rafael, Toni
Mal6-1DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezDe la TorreGarmendia 2CidonchaGutierrezIbanezAyechuGarcia* 3Rafael, Palacios, Luis Manuel

--

SUMMARY

We keep on keeping on as the Bilbao train shows no signs of stopping. We had some good results, especially against Barcelona and Liverpool, scored plenty of goals and generally did well.

I have finally agreed to sell Andoni Santano who keeps on wanting a new challenge. He will join Atletico Madrid for $40m in the summer and Ander Ibanez may be joining them too for $18m but that is yet to be confirmed.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
UNAI GARMENDIA
View attachment 332910

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 332911
 
images


MARCH

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 45, Gomez 85, Herrera 90)
Real Betis 1 (Rodriguez 75)

I sold their scorer in the summer so I was pretty ****** when he scored but Aitor won us the game thankfully.

--

Athletic Bilbao 4 (Muniain 4, 90pen, Herrera 44, Damia 76)
Levante 1 (Alba 79)

Aitor's great run of form continued here as we won comfortably.

--

Real Madrid 2 (Acuna 33, Brown 68)
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 14, 76, Gomez 23)

A fantastic win. Ordonez Lopez made his return from injury here.

--

UEFA Champions League 1st Round 2nd Leg
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Gomez 21, 83)
Liverpool 0

(Athletic Bilbao win 4-0 on aggregate)

Oceano Hondo N'Dongo was the man to return from injury here as we progress easily enough.

--

Athletic Bilbao 5 (Gutierrez 14, Garcia 23, Gomez 27, Herrera 53, Muniain 62)

Espanyol 1 (Djuricic 45)

Roberto Gomez just cant stop scoring at the minute!!!

--

Levante 1 (Tenorio 90)
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Valcarcel 43, Garcia 55, 73pen)

We were struggling in the 1st half as we had Izurza taken off injured and had Ruiz sent-off but we fought back and even had a goal disallowed.

--

Athletic Bilbao 5 (Muniain 30, Herrera 32, 35, 60, Cidoncha 48)
Almeria 0

Aitor celebrated signing a new contract by banging in a hat-trick here.

--

UEFA Champions League QF 1st Leg
Benfica 2 (Guilherme 52, Ganchev 73)
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Garcia 37, Santano 41)

I am content with this result, especially since they had a goal disallowed!!

--

LINEUPS
OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Real Betis3-1DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerrera*GarciaRafael, Ibanez, Gutierrez
Lev4-1DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezDe la TorreToniVinasIzurzaMuniain* 2HerreraGarciaDamia, Ayechu
R. Mad3-2DavidAlonsoValcarcelGomezRafaelSantanoCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerreraGarcia* 2Ordonez Lopez, Palacios, Gutierrez
Liv2-0DavidAlonsoHondo N'DongoGomez* 2De la TorreToniCidonchaIzurzaMuniainGutierrezGarciaIbanez, Ayechu, Rafael
Esp5-1DavidAlonsoHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreOrdonez LopezCidonchaGutierrez*MuniainHerreraGarciaRafael, Garmendia, Ayechu
Lev3-1DavidRuizHondo N'DongoValcarcelDe la TorreOrdonez LopezCidonchaIzurzaMuniainHerrera*Garcia 2Gutierrez, Rafael, Garmendia
Alm5-0DavidAlonsoHondo N'DongoGomezRafaelSantanoCidonchaGutierrezMuniainHerrera* 3GarciaAlfredo, Garmendia
Ben2-2DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaGutierrezMuniainHerrera*GarciaGarmendia, Ibanez, Rafael

--

SUMMARY

We are set up for a successful end of season here after we put in a strong set of results this month. We are 14pts clear at the top of the league and all but champions while we are in a good position to qualify for the Champions League semis.

Individually some players really stepped up a gear. Roberto Gomez was immense, Fermin Garcia was superb too after being injured but both were eclipsed by god himself, Aitor Herrera as he played 7 games, scored 6, assisted 11 and got 4 man of the match awards!!!!!

I got a decent keeper in the youth intake but the best he can aspire to be is my long term backup keeper as David will be inbetween the posts for a few years to come yet!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
AITOR HERRERA
View attachment 332695

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 332696

--

images


SPAIN

Friendly
Spain 3 (Cano 7, 56, Barreto 62)
Uruguay 0

Lineup - David, De la Torre (Fabinho), Valcarcel, Gomez, Hudson, M.Ruiz (Vinas), Cidoncha, Izurza (Gutierrez), Cano*, Herrera, Garcia (Barreto)

I had several injuries for this match so gave two Brazilians a debut (Fabinho and Hudson) as well as my own player - Vinas.
 
images


APRIL

Atletico Madrid 1 (Traore 36)
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Garcia 10)

Not a great result but I will take it. I put on Valcarcel and he got sent-off straight away. Perez Villarroya returned from injury here.

--

UEFA Champions League QF 1st Leg
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Herrera 21, Gutierrez 75)
Benfica 0
(Athletic Bilbao win 4-2 on aggregate)
--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Perez Villarroya 6, Garcia 56pen, 83pen)
Gimnastic 1 (Miranda 74)

It just occurred to me - this save is 95% about Aitor Herrera. So why the **** he isnt my captain and doesnt take the penalties to boost his goals record I have no clue!!! He has decent stats for everything after all.


--

Real Valladolid 0
Athletic Bilbao 2 (Muniain 14, Perez Villarroya 54)

--

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Hondo N'Dongo 5, Garcia 12, Gutierrez 60)
Sevilla 0


I rested a few players here for the upcoming Champions League match.

--

UEFA Champions League SF 1st Leg
Manchester United 2 (Daws 11, 19)
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Garcia 64)

AAAGGGHHH!!!! Our first defeat of the season!!! To be fair we were awful and had Vinas sent-off in stoppage time.


--

Rayo Vallecano 0
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Garcia 8, Herrera 25, Gomes og60)

CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!!!

--

UEFA Champions League SF 2nd Leg
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Muniain 18, Garcia 46, 105)
Manchester United 1 (Foster 32)

(AET - Athletic Bilbao win 4-3 on aggregate)

We make it into the final and deservedly so. Izurza had a goal disallowed but admittedly we were helped by them having a man sent-off.


--

LINEUPS

OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Atl M.1-1DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la Torre SantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaValcarcel, Garmendia, Gutierrez
Ben2-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezRafaelSantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerrera*GarciaGutierrez, Garmendia, Alonso
Gim3-1DaivdRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 2Garmendia, Gutierrez, Vinas
R. Val2-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la Torre*SantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaAlfredo, Alonso
Sev3-0DavidAzpilicuetaHondo N'DongoGomezRafaelGarmendia*CidonchaGutierrezIbanezHerreraGarciaOrdonez Lopez, Ayechu, Vinas
Man Utd1-2DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaVinas, Gutierrez, Valcarcel
Rayo3-0DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la Torre*SantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaGutierrez, Alonso, Garmendia
Man Utd3-1DavidAlonsoHondo N'DongoValcarcelDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaMuniainPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarcia* 2Izurza, Garmendia, Rafael


--

SUMMARY

On paper this month was decent enough but I have higher standards and I am disappointed with this month overall - after all we lost our first game of the season!!!!!!

We made it to the Champions League final by finishing off Benfica and narrowly beating Manchester United. Awaiting us in the final is Lyon and I am confident of our chances of winning the cup.

We have 3 league games left so it is imperative that we remain unbeaten and we also have two cup finals next month so it should be fun!!!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
FERMIN GARCIA
View attachment 332339

--

LIGA BBVA
View attachment 332338
 
images


MAY

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Muniain 3, Alfredo 47, 52)
Barcelona 2 (Bustamante 7, Jamelao 14)

A fantastic win as I played a backup side and came back from 2-1 down and a man down to win the match.

--

Copa del Rey Final
Athletic Bilbao 4 (Santano 2, Herrera 15, Hondo N'Dongo 62, Alfredo 69)
Real Betis 1 (Pozuelo 81)

A very easy cup final which was helped when they had a man sent-off. Aitor Herrera once again ran the show in the big match.

--

Leganes 1 (Fernandez 70)

Athletic Bilbao 3 (Granell og18, Valcarcel 55, Alfredo 63)

--

Valencia 3 (James 5, David og75, Segovia 86)
Athletic Bilbao 3 (Alfredo 30, Valcarcel 42, Garmendia 45)

This was both Ibanez's and Azpilicueta's last game for the club and while I am happy that we ended another league campaign unbeaten I am annoyed at throwing away a 2 goal lead.

--

UEFA Champions League Final
Lyon 0
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Izurza 60)

This was an awful final. The first half was a non event and things livened up a bit just after the break when they had a goal disallowed. Izurza struck the only goal of the game and we held on. Santano got the man of the match award in his last game for the club.


--

LINEUPS
OPPRESGKRBCBCBLBCMCMAMRAMLAMCSTSUBS
Barc3-2DavidAzpilicuetaValcarcelPalaciosRuizGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanezGutierrezAlfredo* 2Izurza, Luis Manuel, Ordonez Lopez
Real Betis4-1DavidRuizHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantanoCidonchaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerrera*GarciaMuniain, Alfredo, Alonso
Leg3-1DavidAlonsoValcarcelPalaciosDe la TorreGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanez*Ordonez LopezAlfredoAyechu, Lora, Luis Manuel
Val3-3DavidAzpilicuetaValcarcel*PalaciosDe la TorreGarmendiaVinasMuniainIbanezGutierrezAlfredoAyechu, Lora, Ordonez Lopez
Lyon1-0DavidAlonsoHondo N'DongoGomezDe la TorreSantano*GarmendiaIzurzaPerez VillarroyaHerreraGarciaMuniain, Alfredo, Rafael


--

SUMMARY

This was a decent end of the season as we kept the unbeaten run until the end of the campaign which was no mean feat considering I fielded a backup side against Barca and Valencia. The Copa del Rey final wasnt a contest and we won that easily enough.

Once again we triumphed in the UEFA Champions League but it was a disappointing final as we just sneaked it 1-0. It reminds me of the time when Aberdeen won the Scottish Cup in 1983........
<font size="4"><span style="font-family: book antiqua">[video=youtube;GoSiBq2Q0MU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoSiBq2Q0MU[/video]

An end of season post is to follow......

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
ALFREDO
View attachment 332220
 
images


END OF SEASON POST

Same old same old!!! We won every competition entered and did it fairly comfortably. The only regret was our 1 defeat at the hands of Manchester United in the Champions League.

Individually there were some excellent performances. Ibanez, when picked, was a beast and got an assist a game almost despite having lesser stats than his compatriots. Ruiz, Rafael, Garmendia, Izurza, Gutierrez and Vinas all made decent progress while Valcarcel and Palacios didnt look out of place either.

Aitor had a quiet season I suppose but in 47 games he scored 23 and assisted 28 so I am not complaining!!! Finally Fermin Garcia was back to his best and almost got a goal a game.

There wasnt a single disappointment to be fair.

--

FINAL LEAGUE TABLE

View attachment 332216

--

FIRST TEAM SQUAD

View attachment 332215

--

PLAYER OF THE SEASON
AITOR HERRERA
View attachment 332214

--

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE SEASON
UNAI GARMENDIA

View attachment 332213

--

AWARDS

Spanish Player of the Year
- A.Herrera
Spanish Young Player of the Year - U.Garmendia
Liga BBVA Player of the Year - A.Herrera
Liga BBVA Manager of the Year
Liga BBVA Top Spanish Scorer
- F.Garcia
Liga BBVA Team of the Year - R.Gomez, A.Herrera, F.Garcia (David, A.De la Torre)
FIFA World Player of the Year - A.Herrera
FIFA World Golden Ball - A.Herrera
FIFA World Team of the Year - David, A.Herrera (G.Perez Villarroya)


 
images


PRE-WORLD CUP FRIENDLIES
&
SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT

Republic of Ireland 0
Spain 3 (Hondo N'Dongo 36, Perez Villarroya 50, Valcarcel 67)

Lineup - David, De La Torre, Hondo N'Dongo*, Gomez (Valcarcel), Granell, Santano (Garmendia), Cidoncha (M.Ruiz), Izurza (Muniain), Perez Villarroya, Herrera, Garcia (Alfredo)

--

Spain 1 (Garcia 69)
Costa Rica 0


Lineup - David, De la Torre, Hondo N'Dongo (Barandiaran), Gomez, Granell, Santano (Garmendia), Cidoncha, Izurza* (Muniain), Perez Villarroya (Cano), Herrera, Garcia (Barreto)

--

Spain 7 (Santano 1, Izurza 13, Garcia 27, 31, Gomez 49, 70, Garmendia 78)
Luxembourg 0


Lineup - David, G.Ruiz (Granell), Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez*, De la Torre, Santano (Garmendia), Cidoncha (Vinas), Izurza, Perez Villarroya, Herrera, Garcia

--

SQUAD FOR THE WORLD CUP


Goalkeepers

NAMECLUBPOSVALUECAPSGOALS
DAVIDAthletic BilbaoGK26m390
David DE GEAManchester UnitedGK6.75m10
LIMAWest Bromwich AlbionGK2m960


Defenders
NAMECLUBPOSVALUECAPSGOALS
Ekain BARANDIARANNapoliDC15.5m506
Angel DE LA TORREAthletic BilbaoDRL25.5m720
Roberto GOMEZAthletic BilbaoDC18.25m304
Josep GRANELLBorussia DortmundDL7.25m342
Oceano HONDO N'DONGOAthletic BilbaoDC15.75m378
Gontzal RUIZAthletic BilbaoDRLC9.75m120
Ander VALCARCELAthletic BilbaoDC8m41


Midfielders

NAMECLUBPOSVALUECAPSGOALS
Oscar Pablo CANOReal MadridAML19.5m415
Pedro Jose CIDONCHAAthletic BilbaoMC53m1019
Unai GARMENDIAAthletic BilbaoM/AMC9.25m41
Aitor HERRERAAthletic BilbaoAMLC/ST34m15251
Jose Luis IZURZAAthletic BilbaoAMRC15.5m122
Iker MUNIAINAthletic BilbaoAMRLC11.5m14757
Gasper PEREZ VILLARROYAAthletic BilbaoM/AMLC33.5m5522
Martin RUIZReal MadridMC16m281
Andoni SANTANOAthletic BilbaoM/AMC19.75m5812
Juan Pedro VINASAthletic BilbaoMC6m20

Forwards
NAMECLUBPOSVALUECAPSGOALS
ALFREDOAthletic BilbaoST25m2710
Alan BARRETOSporting LisbonST5.25m42
Fermin GARCIAAthletic BilbaoST34m10280

 
images


FIFA World Cup 2026

Hosts - Mexico

Group E

Spain 2 (Cidoncha 19, Garcia 45)
Egypt 0

Lineup - David, G.Ruiz, Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez, De la Torre, Santano, Cidoncha (Vinas), Izurza, Perez Villarroya (Cano), Herrera, Garcia (Barreto)

USA 1-2 Czech. Republic

--

Czech. Republic 0
Spain 0

Lineup
- David, G.Ruiz, Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez, De la Torre, Santano (Garmendia), M.Ruiz (Vinas), Izurza, Perez Villarroya, Herrera, Garcia (Alfredo)

This was one of the worst games I have ever seen. It was over in 2min such was the lack of chances.

Egypt 0-2 USA

--

USA 1 (Willis 83)

Spain 2 (Perez Villarroya 10, Hondo N'Dongo 90)

Lineup - David, De la Torre, Hondo N'Dongo, Gomez, Granell, Santano, M.Ruiz, Izurza (Muniain), Perez Villarroya (Cano), Herrera*, Garcia (Barreto)

Czech. Republic 1-1 Egypt

View attachment 332159

We qualify as group winners but I am not happy with our performances as we should have won all 3 games fairly comfortably in my opinion.



 
Got bored so I decided to read through this, awesome story mate. :)
 
Top