These are the tears of Muniain, Toquero, Llorente, Iñigo Pérez, Javi Martínez, Ibai Gómez, Aurtenetxe or Ander Herrera in Bucharest. Or the one at Villalibre in Seville after the loss against Real Sociedad. The tears of defeat in the final, the tears of disappointment, not the failure.
The tears of seeing yourself so close to making history and staying one step away from glory. Because that’s history. Since Bucharest, the two finals in the same year and Osasuna reaching the Cup final are part of the history of each club. Another thing is how it is remembered, of course.
I still remember when we interviewed Jagoba Arrasate, then coach of Berriatuko in La Preferente, in the program ‘Libre Directo’ with Nando Alonso on Radio Popular. As friendly and correct as he is today, he is about to touch glory with the title of cupbearer at the age of 45.
And he has directed matches in the Champions League, he did it during his time at Real Sociedad. Passion, closeness and simplicity define him. On Saturday, after the game, still unable to assimilate everything that happened on the green of La Cartuja, Arrasate addressed the media with the nature that characterizes him. Asked about the reasons why he broke down in tears after the game that just ended, he admitted that “when you have a lot of feelings and emotions, eventually you break down at a certain moment and I was broken when I saw the fans because of it’s a pity that he couldn’t be offered the Cup, which he deserves just as much as the players”.
Real Madrid’s victory over Osasuna opens another path for Athletic to play in European competition next season. The winner of the Cup, Ancelotti’s team will play in the Champions League; the finalist, a few years ago stopped competing for that award, Osasuna, in this case, had to find their European classification through the League. It will be the seventh classified with the option to play in the Conference League next season.
Athletic is eighth
Of course, at the moment, Athletic is eighth with the same points as Girona, and with all the options to achieve that place. The Conference motivates me. The lions can now wake up because now Michel’s team, and even Sevilla, who could be confused, and rightly so, in the semifinal of the Europa League, are in better condition than Valverde.
The thing about recovering the ground from Betis, after the defeat a week ago, I see it as more complicated. Same with Villarreal, and today the lions visit La Cerámica.
On Saturday I saw the final in a txoko with my friends. My friends are from Athletic, some members. Let’s say the majority went with Real Madrid because they wanted Athletic to have the option of playing in Europe and also because, why not say, Osasuna was the rival that knocked out the rojiblanco team in the final, and hey, they had their pride and his little red-and-white heart were touched, and somehow it was about finding a certain revenge.
The choice is complicated because in front of them is a team they have no special love for, and Barça has gained ground in recent seasons, but of course that initial desire can do more. There are those who will not mind if Osasuna wins, because it is a Basque team, and can beat Bilbao’s number one soccer rival, Real Madrid. This was not the case last Thursday
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
