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Ander Herrera: “In Basque society, nothing is bigger than Athletic”

Ander Herrera: “In Basque society, nothing is bigger than Athletic”

Members of Man Utd's media team visited Bilbao to talk to the Athletic midfielder about his football career

Central midfielder Ander Herrera provided a flawless explanation of Athletic Club’s philosophy while speaking to Manchester United’s UTD Podcast.

Set against the backdrop of San Mamés, the no.23 - back at Athletic for a second spell - gave an in-depth interview about his life and career.

“You have to live it to know what Athletic means for the society. I have played for great clubs, huge clubs like Manchester United, but in Basque society Athletic is even bigger," Herrera said about Los Leones. "Here even people who don’t like football like Athletic. It’s something special and it’s a pleasure to live it.”


He continued: “It’s not easy to explain how the Club have been able to keep the team in the first division since the first day. Only Real Madrid, Barcelona and Athletic Club have never been relegated.

“That says a lot about the club, the region, the way the players work and the philosophy of the Club.

“Only Basque players, or players raised in The Basque Country, can play for the Club. This means all our fans feel part of it. Most of the fans, even if they haven’t met a player, they’ll know his cousin, brother, sister or parent. That creates a special atmosphere here."

During the discussion, he also touched on what him playing for Athletic means to his family. Ander’s parents are from Bilbao and his father came up through the academy at Lezama.

He said: “My parents are from Bilbao and that’s why I was born here. But I moved to Zaragoza when I was three years old because of my dad’s job.

“My dad did all the academy at Athletic Club but was let go when he was 18. He went on to have a great career, but my dad couldn’t play for the club of his heart. I could do it for him, so he’s proud of that. For him and myself it’s special that I was able to play for Athletic."

Ander speaks on a range of topics throughout the chat, such as his first spell in Bilbao, the Europa League win over Man Utd at Old Trafford and his stints in Manchester and Paris.

The interview was filmed at The Cathedral and is now available in full at manutd.com