It looks like the season for debutants in the Athletic men’s first team this season is going to stay at five. As in the past. From the Morcillo, Iñigo Vicente, Berenguer, Zarraga and Nico Williams to the Agirrezabala, Vivian, Serrano, Petxarroman and Artola of this one.
There may be a few more debutants in the final stretch of the League, but it doesn’t look like it. Of these last five debutants, the last to do so was Juan Artola. The red-and-white academy player, in Lezama from the juvenile category, became the 632nd lion to make his debut with the red and white shirt. The striker entered the field replacing Raúl García in the 78th minute of the cup match between the rojiblancos and Mancha Real.
The attacker had already been summoned by Marcelino on several occasions and the Asturian coach decided to give him entry to the lawn of La Juventud with the number 34. It is the first and only premiere of this year 2022. We will see if next season, surely yes , more debuts are coming before the end of the year.
Artola is the last to make his debut and to join that list of players who have only participated once with Athletic in an official match. The previous one in this particular classification was Andoni López. The now Amorebieta player played a duel against Girona in Montilivi. It’s curious because with the ‘Amore’ shirt he also made his debut against the Catalan team, although in this case it was in Lezama.
Iñigo Múñoz, Oskar Gil, Iker Undabarrena, Jon Vidal or Isaac Aketxe are other players who have also gone through a similar situation. Further away in time are the Goyos, Crescencio Cuellar or De Val, with whom I recently had the pleasure of chatting about it and despite participating in only one game (against Cruyff’s Barcelona) he remembers it with great affection and honor. How not to. In total there are 70 players who made their official debut with the first team and did not play again.
I still give Artola options. Maybe next season will have his chance.
last in line
This campaign, up to three more players have been able to debut with the first team: Aitor Paredes, Ander Iru and Luis Bilbao. The case of the Bilbao defender is striking. This season he has been summoned up to four times by Marcelino (Cádiz, Betis and Real Madrid at San Mamés and at the Santiago Bernabéu), to which must be added the seven times last season (four with Garitano, three with Marcelino) . Eleven calls with the first team, zero minutes.
I don’t know if it will be a record, but almost. The goalkeeper was summoned in the duel against Real Madrid due to the absence of Simón and Ezkieta. It was the second experience for the son of Athletic’s goalkeeper coach with the first team because in the 2019-2020 season he was a substitute in Las Llanas in the Cup tie against Sestao River. The end of Berango lived two consecutive calls. He was in Mancha Real and later in the El Sadar match against Osasuna. He was left without playing, although if he continues his good progression it will not be long before he has minutes with the first team, at the same time.
Is five a logical number of debuts for a youth team? To me, honestly, I know little. Although I don’t like debuting for the sake of debuting either. It is a debate to analyze. It’s not another Thursday thing.
