Angel Villacampa: “This club is unique”

Ángel Villacampa has already taken the helm of Athletic Club ladies’ team. Although the team will start on 19 July, the new red-and-white mister has already made his first ‘service’ with his official start, which has taken place in the Jose Iragorri press room of San Mamés flanked by the new sports director, Joseba Agirre, and by the president, Aitor Elizegi.

The red-and-white president is the one who made the presentations highlighting that it was “the first day for both” -Joseba and Ángel- two coaches who know what it is like to win the maximum ladies’ home competition (three times): “I want to welcome someone who understands women’s football in all its dimension”. Similarly, Joseba Agirre has linked the two ‘premieres’: “It’s an honour for me to start my new journey by introducing Ángel. His arrival has been very easy because he has put many facilities, he has believed in the project. But above all he is a prepared man. Thank you for believing in the project, for believing in the players.

The turn has come to listen for the first time to Angel Villacampa, who has thanked Elizegi and Agirre for trusting him for this project: “I only hope to rise to the occasion, this club is unique and I am privileged to be here. I want this team to transmit all the values that this club represents. Above all, the new coach committed himself from day one to having “a team that he is going to transmit. There I can get wet, yes I promise that it will be a team that will not leave anyone indifferent.

Then it was time to evaluate the incorporation of Bibiane Schulze, who comes to B to continue his training: “The signing fits alone. His family fits in, his career fits in, his knowledge of Athletic fits in, his desire to play in this shirt, his respect for this shield. Precisely, it fits because she understands the philosophy of this club. Philosophy is not written to weaken this entity, it was written to strengthen it, it will continue to be written to strengthen this entity, so that in the future those who wear this shield and this shirt understand what it means. This is the case of Bibiane and her family”.

“In the case of a 20-year-old girl, who lives in Ispaster, in Bizkaia; granddaughter, daughter… I don’t understand the debate. I do understand the debate on the philosophy of Athletic because it will be eternal and, I insist, so that it makes us stronger. That is a good thing, that this freshness and this social richness is maintained and that we are able to maintain our commitment to this way of understanding football. But to open the debate when there is no debate sometimes seems to me to be artificial. It seems to me to be the right path, of a family, environment and person who deserves all the benefits of wearing the Athletic shield. I think that the club has to defend the desire of a local player, a Basque player, a Biscayan player to play and start in Athletic. Losing these people along the way I think makes us weaker”.