Raúl García: “It makes me happy if someone takes my place and does well”

Athletic Club forward Raúl García reiterated his opinion that the team must always come first, admitting he enjoys watching the Lions’ youngsters play well.

The no.22 made his first start of the season during Saturday’s 2-0 win over RCD Mallorca at San Mamés, and has seen his playing time reduced recently due to the emergence of several young players.

“We’re a team. It makes me enormously happy when someone plays in my position and does well, even more so if he is young and has the potential to learn and improve,” Raúl said at a press conference ahead of Athletic’s upcoming LaLiga Santander fixture against Atlético Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano (Saturday, 16:15 CEST).

“That’s not going to change the way I think or the way I work. I always try to give my all and I believe that the more demanding everyone is, the better it is for the team.”

Nico Williams, Julen Agirrezabala, Dani Vivian and Nico Serrano have come up through the academy at Lezama to make first-team debuts under Marcelino and García stressed that despite their fine start to life at the top level, patience is still needed when it comes to their development.

He said: “The young lads have everything necessary to contribute, they’re a fundamental part of this squad. They must be patient, and we have to be patient with them, they have to work hard to show everything they have.

“They’re giving their best, but playing in the elite is difficult and takes time. That’s why we veterans are here too, to help them and give them peace of mind.” 

After securing a second consecutive win last weekend, Athletic take on LaLiga’s co-leaders Atlético Madrid this weekend, always a special fixture for the striker as it sees him face a side where he spent a large chunk of his career.

“Atlético have the most competitive squad of all right now,” he added. “They’ve been constantly improving every year. They’re a difficult team to play against and they force you to fight for everything and for those of us who play upfront, it’s not usually easy.

“Hopefully we can keep the good feelings going and get something out of the match. We’ve been working hard ahead of this clash and I’m especially motivated to go and do battle there.”

García spoke positively about Athletic’s start to the season and highlighted the importance of playing in front of fans at San Mamés again.

He said: “Every game we win is another chance towards the top of the table, that’s the path we have to stay on. Being consistent will help us achieve our long-term goals.

“The fans have been crucial to this start. The matches with them are pure energy, they make a huge difference. While it’s true the kick-off times aren’t exactly in our favour, we need everybody possible at the stadium.

“Let’s hope that the ground is full for every fixture and that we can all enjoy ourselves.”