San Mames pays homage to our 1983 LaLiga champions

To mark the 40th anniversary of the LaLiga title won in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in May 1983 - A triumph which provoked the historic celebrations on Bilbao's River Nervión - Athletic Club brought together the members of the team that won the seventh LaLiga championship in our club's history.

In an afternoon full of events, the 1983 champions were hosted by Club president Jon Uriarte, who thanked them for their presence at San Mames, recalling the successes and legacy of this title-winning team from the 80s. This was followed by a small institutional lunch, where the members of the coaching staff and the former players were able to chat quietly, recalling old anecdotes and triumphs, together with other Athletic Club Members.

The majority of the squad were present: Andoni Zubizarreta, Carlos Meléndez, Santi Urkiaga, Andoni Goikoetxea, Jose Mari 'Txato' Núñez, Patxi Bolaños, Agustín Guisasola, Txetxu Gallego, Miguel de Andrés, Miguel Sola, Juanjo Elgezabal, Ismael Urtubi Dani Ruiz-Bazán, Manolo Sarabia, Txema Noriega, Estanis Argote, Julio Salinas, Rikar Arrien, Óscar Vivanco and Endika Guarrotxena; as were members of the coaching staff: Javier Clemente, Manolo Delgado Meco, Jose Angel Iribar, Ángel Gorostidi and Miguel Gutiérrez.

For professional and personal reasons, Andoni Cedrún, Iñigo Liceranzu, Luis de la Fuente, Patxi Salinas and Teo Rastrojo were unable to attend. However, Athletic Club would like to thank them for their willingness and receptiveness to try to attend the event.

Afterwards, one of the most emotional moments of the day took place, as the relatives of Fernando Tirapu, Juanjo Narváez, Natxo Biritxinaga and Piru Gainza, the deceased members of the team and coaching staff, as well as the daughters of former president Pedro Aurtenetxe, were reunited in the presidential box.

After a reception with the Athletic Club board of directors and the presentation of commemorative shirts for the members of the 1983 LaLiga winning team, one of the major highlights of the night came with the standing ovation from the San Mamés faithful. Minutes before the start of the match against Real Betis, flanked by the current squad, the champions took to the pitch with the trophy in their hands to once again receive the applause of the fans who they thrilled on so many glorious afternoons. Emotions and memories ran deep, both for those who lived through it and now recall those moments, as well as for new generations .

Manolo Sarabia emulated the gesture he made 40 years ago, when he walked onto the pitch with his children Eder and Oihane, but this time accompanied by his grandchildren. Endika Guarrotxena, scorer of the decisive goal in the 1984 Copa final, who was unable to lift the 1983 title as he was doing compulsory military service in Ceuta at the time, also took to the pitch at San Mames with the rest of his team-mates.

Some of the players already previously rekindled old memories at different events in the past, such as the charity matches played in 1992 and 1997, the exhibition about La Gabarra organised by the club in 2008, and the farewell match for the old San Mames in 2013. Now, together again, San Mamés has bowed down to a team that was the best of the best four decades ago. Proof of this is the 1983 LaLiga championship and the historic domestic treble in 1984.

After the emotional tribute, the champions enjoyed the match against Real Betis from The Cathedral's Presidential Box. At the end of the match, they went back down to the changing rooms to greet the current squad. The perfect end to a night in which we paid tribute to a group of players and coaches who took Athletic Club to the top.