‘Every minor detail – execute them’: The striker’s journey from injury table to scoring with the Basque club

The first time the Athletic striker played in the UK, an 18-year-old appearing for the youth squad against Borussia Mönchengladbach Under-23s at Wycombe’s stadium in September 2015, he hit the target. During his subsequent match he took the field in the country, against the Black Cats weeks after, he converted. Another occasion, against Pep Guardiola’s team not long later, sure enough, he did it once more. Upon his comeback to the city to face United at the sports complex in the 2017 season, he did it once more. It was a superb volley, as well. “Truly,” he states, “it ranks among my finest I’ve netted.” So Athletic did what they had to do: they took him off.

“I was furious,” the forward admits, before breaking into laughter. “Probably there’s a recording. We traveled to face United and I was pretty good. I wasn’t allowed to feature the final 45 minutes: I hadn’t yet signed deal, goals were flowing, there were lots of rumours, you know how it is. I don’t know about interest from Newcastle, but I came across reports about Man United, the typical thing. It’s unclear how true it was, but supposing an offer came, I’d have chosen to stay at the club. It’s a privilege.”

La Real relieve strain with extraordinary derby triumph

At the facility, the Basque Country, the day’s first practice is about to start; after it, the quick travel to the airport and another trip to Britain, now to face Newcastle in the UCL on midweek. Uttering the name lights him up. This is proving a tough year for the team, due in part to the demands of being here. Defeated late on in the derby on Saturday, they have won only one of their last eight matches and lost against Arsenal and Dortmund in European competition. Yet, take in the big picture, the memorable evenings and upcoming events, and he feels a calm gratitude within him.

In the three years since he had returned to the club, Gorka has been a Europa League semi-finalist, prevented from reaching a domestic final by the English giants, and has traveled on a traditional boat through the waterway flanked by a huge crowd after securing the Spanish cup, the team’s initial silverware in a long wait. Now he is Athletic’s top scorer in the UCL, where they are countercultural and making their first appearance in a long period. “I couldn’t have pictured this,” he says.

Guruzeta thought it hard enough just to earn a spot and he was right. Born to the former Real Sociedad player the former professional and a season ticket holder at the opposition side, the forward is from the Antiguoko academy, the local academy that produced Mikel Arteta, Xabi Alonso and the tactician. He signed for Athletic at his teens but after his top-level debut in the 2018 season, he experienced a torn cruciate, being released, a demotion and a call back before he could earn his place, coming back aged 26 to enjoy the highlights of his career.

“Joining the setup not expecting to reach the senior squad but every phase you advance through you’re remaining and you can notice the proximity. You make it and … you have to leave.” He played six, nine, five, one, four and 20 minutes in half a dozen appearances between his debut and early 2019. “And then I go back down to the filial [Bilbao Athletic, the Under-23s]. Several appearances at that level and I suffered the ACL injury.

“A severe disappointment but In retrospect as a turning point because it forced me to alter the way I saw things. The rehabilitation process is hard, but it helps. You develop habits you didn’t have. It’s not about neglect, but I would go to training and then go home, typical youth behavior. In the facility, you have everything, so take full advantage. Training, prehab. Get in the gym. If your hips aren’t balanced, work on that. If your ankles are a 10, make it a 12 or a 14. All those ‘silly things’: perform them.

“In the first team you’re going to crash into players who have crashed into players 200,000 times. Highly robust. I look at photos of me before: I had slender legs. Thus incidents occur. Current photos and the improvement is clear. Recovery revealed that. Training finishes, but there’s more to do. Teammates are set, really ready; you have to be too.”

Game time is essential. The striker moved upset in that year, in his early twenties, dropping into the second division. With Sabadell in that season, he got three strikes in numerous matches. At Amorebieta in the second half of 2021-22, the scoring picked up. “Players go through it: loans, terminated contracts. Should you reverse it, dedication, confidence, and should the time come the requirement appears where you play, recall is possible. Readiness is vital. When they decided to call again, it was a dream come true. Lifting the cup, play in Europe, and qualify for Europe’s top tier … pfff.”

No wonder he says this is to be enjoyed. Especially after the prior campaign which, sometimes, was about endurance. After being leading scorer with 16 in 2023-24, his output dropped to seven in {15 games more|additional matches|