‘All those silly things – do them’: Guruzeta’s journey from gurney to goals with the Basque club
The debut appearance the Spanish forward competed in English soil, an 18-year-old representing the reserve team against German opponents at Adams Park in fall 2015, he found the net. During his subsequent match he took the field in England, against Sunderland two months later, he converted. His third outing, against Pep Guardiola’s team six weeks after that, indeed, he did it once more. Upon his comeback to the city to face United at Leigh’s ground in that year, he did it once more. A spectacular strike, too. “Actually,” he remarks, “it’s a top-class goal in my career.” Therefore the team did their duty: they substituted him.
“I became very upset,” the attacker reveals, then chuckling. “There must be a video somewhere. We went to play United and I was pretty good. They kept me out of the final 45 minutes: I was without a signed agreement, I was scoring goals, many stories circulated, as you’d expect. No confirmation on Newcastle being interested, but I remember reading about Man United, the typical thing. I’m not certain if it was accurate, but supposing an offer came, I would have wanted to stay at Athletic. I feel lucky to be here.”
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At the training ground, the city, the early training is set to begin; after it, the short journey to Loiu airport and a further journey to the UK, now to face Newcastle in the UCL on the upcoming match. Just saying those two words lights him up. It’s turning out to be a challenging campaign for the club, due in part to the demands of being here. Defeated late on in the local rivalry, they have won only one of their recent league fixtures and lost against Arsenal and Dortmund in Europe. Yet, look at the overall situation, the major occasions he’s experienced and those that lie ahead, and he feels a calm gratitude from him.
In the the period since he had come back to Athletic, the striker has been a Europa League semi-finalist, denied at the last hurdle a domestic final by Manchester United, and has ridden an historic vessel up the Nervión estuary flanked by a huge crowd after lifting the trophy, the first title in 40 years. He’s now the top goal-getter in the European competition, where they are countercultural and making their first appearance in a decade. “This was beyond my dreams,” he says.
Guruzeta thought it difficult enough just to make the first team and he was right. Born to the ex-La Real star his father and a regular attendee at the opposition side, Gorka is from the Antiguoko academy, the San Sebastián club that nurtured the coach, the legendary midfielder and the Bournemouth manager. He joined Athletic at 17 but after his first-team bow in that summer, he experienced a ACL injury, being released, a drop in category and a return before he could finally secure an opportunity, coming back aged 26 to experience the peak of the club’s history.
“Joining the setup not expecting to reach the first team but each step you progress through you’re still there and you can observe the approach. You get there but … you have to leave.” He played six, nine, five, one, four and 20 minutes in six games between his first game and early 2019. “Then I was sent to the filial [Bilbao Athletic, the Under-23s]. Five, six games there and I tear my cruciate.
“A massive setback but In retrospect as something positive because it made me change the way I saw things. The rehabilitation process is hard, but it’s beneficial. You cultivate routines new to you. It’s not that you don’t look after yourself, but I would go to training and then go home, like when you’re a kid. At Lezama, all resources are available, so do everything. Practice, prevention. Strength training. Should your hips be uneven, address that. With decent ankle function, make it a 12 or a 14. Every small aspect: do them.
“In the first team you’re going to crash into players who have been in battles repeatedly. Extremely powerful. Seeing previous pictures: my physique was slight. So what happens, happens. Look at pictures of me now and the improvement is clear. Injury made me see that. Training finishes, but there’s more to do. Everyone else is ready, really ready; no exceptions.”
You also have to play. Guruzeta departed emotionally in 2020, aged 23, dropping into the second division. During his Sabadell spell in the 20-21 campaign, he got three strikes in forty appearances. With Amorebieta in the second half of 2021-22, the goals started to flow. “It’s a common path: transfers, releases. With a turnaround, work, believe, and if one day the requirement appears in your position, they might come back for you. Preparation is key. When they decided to call again, an aspiration fulfilled. Lifting the cup, play in Europe, and qualify for Europe’s top tier … pfff.”
No wonder he says appreciate the experience. Particularly after the prior campaign which, on occasions, was involved suffering. Previously the main threat with a high tally, last season he got seven in {15 games more|additional matches|
