Aduriz and the match against Barça: “it´s is a beautiful challenge”.

“It’s hard for a meeting to have as many connotations as this one. You’ve been training and competing for this kind of situation since the pre-season: it’s a beautiful match and that’s how we’re going to face it”.  Athletic Club’s striker,  Aritz Aduriz faced the press this morning at a after the training session held in Lezama and referred to in these terms to the commitment of Copa del Rey quarter-finals that Athletic Club and FC Barcelona will play next Thursday at La Catedral (21pm). “It’s a wonderful challenge. When you play football, you dream of having this kind of matches. I hope we can have a memorable night at San Mamés. One always dreams about that”.

The closest precedent against the Club from Cataluña dates back to the match that opened the 2019-20 Santander League in August, which ended in a 1-0 victory, precisely with a goal by Aduriz. However, “this match will be different, that was a special moment but this is another one”.

Aritz also referred to his reappearance last Sunday against Getafe CF, “I would have liked that the result would have been positive, but I felt quite good and close to the goal”, as well as to his mood during the period of absence and how he faces the future: “Mentally it’s not easy to see what you want and that you are not getting it. It’s a different situation, different to what I was used to, but that’s why it’s enriching too. It’s not easy to know that you have an injury that won’t heal and that you’ll take it with you even after you leave football. I want to be competitive and help this team both inside and outside, to be able to really contribute.”