THE decidedly underwhelming performance which Athletic Club Bilbao produced in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final against Rangers at a packed Ibrox last Thursday night was far from a glowing advertisement for their unique Basque only player policy.
At no stage during an incident-packed, engrossing, unbearably tense encounter did the visitors ever look in serious danger of conceding a goal or suffering a defeat. Still, the dominant display they had been widely tipped to conjure up and emphatic victory they had been expected to record both failed to materialise. They were a definite disappointment.
The travelling supporters who will take their seats in the San Mames Stadium tomorrow evening will be hopeful of seeing their heroes, who will have centre-half John Souttar and midfielder Mohamed Diomande available for selection once again, pull off a famous victory in the rematch and progress to the last four of the competition.
The chances are, though, they will come up against altogether different side and the final outcome will not be quite so favourable. Athletic put their run of three straight goalless draws firmly behind them on Sunday when they came from behind to beat Rayo Vallecano 3-1 in a La Liga game at home.
A second-half double from fit-again Oihan Sancet and a Nico Williams strike ensured they prevailed comfortably and remained firmly on course to finish fourth in the top flight and qualify for the league phase of the Champions League for just the third time in their history.
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Rangers have done superbly away in Europe during the 2024/25 campaign – they have recorded decent results on their travels against Dynamo Kyiv, Malmo, Olympiakos, Nice and Fenerbahce during the past eight months – and should not be written off by any means.
Remember, they beat, albeit under a different manager and with slightly different personnel, Real Betis in Spain in their final Europa League group game last term to top their section and go into the last 16 of the competition automatically.
However, onlookers can expect Ernesto Valverde’s charges, who finished second in the Europa League league phase and who came from 2-1 down and defeated Roma 4-3 on aggregate in the previous round, to provide far more formidable opposition on their own turf.
If they do prevail and go through to a last four double header against either Lyon or Manchester United it will, coupled with the domestic success which the reigning Copa del Rey champions have enjoyed this season and last, be further validation of how they continue to go about their business in 2025.
Athletic Club Bilbao have only used players who hail from or were “formed” in the Basque Country – an area of Spain with a population or little over two million – since way back in 1911 and there is no prospect of them changing their approach despite the importance of finance in the modern game.
Goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala, centre-backs Yeray Alvarez and Daniel Vivian, left-back Inigo Lekue, midfielders Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta Etzeberria and Mikel Jauregizar, playmaker Sancet and wingers Inaki Williams and Nico Williams all came through the ranks.
Only captain and right back Oscar de Marcos and striker Maroan Sannadi were signed and parachuted into the first team.
In stark contrast, just two members of the Rangers team which took to the field before kick-off, goalkeeper Liam Kelly and teenage midfielder Bailey Rice, were reared at Auchenhowie.
Athletic’s unwritten “cantera” rule is directly linked to Basque nationalism and the belief that the ethnic group indigenous to the western Pyrenees and scattered between Spain and France is collectively a nation. It has, in these politically correct days, been described as discriminatory and xenophobic by critics. There have been calls from some quarters to outlaw it.
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But Athletic fans, who have a close bond with players who are very much kindred spirits to them because of their similar backgrounds, are intensely protective of how they operate.
They are also, quite rightly, proud of the fact they can still compete in one of the biggest and best leagues in the world as well as in continental competition without lavishing, like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, vast sums of money during every transfer window.
They have shown that a side can still go toe-to-toe with rivals who outspend them many times over by investing heavily in youth development rather than splashing out in the transfer market and focusing on producing their own technically proficient, physically robust and mentally mature young footballers instead of striving to identify a potential foreign star.
Could a Scottish club ever do the same thing and put their faith entirely in home-grown footballers? It seems about as likely as Rangers forming a guard of honour for Celtic in their meeting at Ibrox next month. But if one of the top teams in Spain, in Europe even, can do it then why not?
Most Premiership clubs have a healthy smattering of players who hail from this country. Graeme Shinnie, Kevin Nisbet, Callum McGregor, James Forrest, Simon Murray, Lyall Cameron, Craig Gordon, Lawrence Shankland, James Wilson, Nicky Cadden, Lennon Miller, John Souttar and Mark O’Hara, to name just a handful, are adored by fans of Aberdeen, Dundee, Hearts, Hibernian, Motherwell, Rangers and St Mirren respectively.
But all of the top flight squads have large complements from down south or overseas. Is it any wonder they face a constant struggle to break even when they rely so heavily on expensive, and often mediocre, imports?
Will Falkirk swell their ranks with foreign imports next term in a bid to survive alongside larger and wealthier rivals and avoid dropping straight back down? It would be understandable if they did so. But it would be laudable if they stuck with the same individuals who had got them up and concentrated on bringing through local talent rather than unearthing a bargain buy too.
Supporters love seeing their heroes bring in exotic players for big money. But if their club was to state they were only going to play Scots it is a stance which they could understand and embrace as well. It would certainly seem to be a more responsible and sustainable way of doing business. In these tough economic times, such a leftfield business model would make perfect financial sense.
Athletic Club Bilbao are very much an exception to the rule in the modern game. But many countries, including England, have benefitted from having homegrown player quota regulations. Perhaps, then, having a limited number of “marquee” signings could be the way to go.
A Scottish club might be pleasantly surprised of the results if they grew some “cajones” and dared to be different.
