Valverde: "We want to take Athletic a step further forward"

Ernesto Valverde is feeling confident and optimistic ahead of the new season, his tenth in the Zurigorri dugout, and believes his Lions are "in great frame of mind".

The Lions start the 2025/26 campaign on Sunday evening by hosting Sevilla FC at San Mames (19:30 CEST).

"As always with a new season, we're looking forward to the start and our aim is to have a good year," Ernesto said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday.

"The challenge is to take Athletic a step further forward and I hope we are all ready for it."
 

📈 "The challenge is to take Athletic a step further forward."

📢 "We're at home in front our people. Let's see if we can start with a win."

🎙️ Ernesto Valverde previews #AthleticSevilla #AthleticClub 🦁 pic.twitter.com/1T3xubqDTh

— Athletic Club (@Athletic_en) August 16, 2025

Despite some mixed results throughout the pre-season, the boss is not too worried, reiterating that it's a period for "trying things out".

He continued: "If you want to win a lot, you have to schedule a different type of match. In reality, it's about testing the difficulties that can arise. You have to take the positives from it."

When asked about Sevilla FC, led by new coach Matias Almeyda, the gaffer said they "competed well" in the friendly matches he's seen.

Valverde added: "It's a new project at Sevilla. When that happens everyone is very expectant.

"I expect their best version, just with us. They're a team that want to be aggressive, win duels in one-on-one situations and they have good players to carry out their game in attack."

The gaffer repeated the importance of seeing value in every point in order to have a successful season.

"All the points at stake are important to me because they put you in the positions we want to be in and have been in in previous seasons," he said

"Tomorrow we play at home in front of our people. We expect the best atmosphere and we would really like to start with a win. Let's see if we can

"A LaLiga season is long and this year we also have to juggle it with another very tough competition, the Champions League. Looking at everything from a positive point of view gives us a boost."