Valverde used 21 players from Athletic’s first team in the last two league games. Both the goal, the defense and the forward, including the two wingers and the midfielder with the striker, were occupied by the same nine lions against Villarreal and Granada. The only two changes that Valverde made from one match to another only affected the double pivot.
In the Athletic lineup, in this way, they repeated Unai Simón from the beginning; De Marcos, Vivian, Paredes, Yuri; Iñaki Williams, Sancet, Nico Williams; and Guruzeta. In the middle against Marcelino’s squad, with Galarreta suspended due to the accumulation of cards, Beñat Prados and Vesga started. Against the Nasrid team, however, the aforementioned Galarreta and Unai Gómez shared a double starting pivot.
Valverde failed to maintain his commitment from start to finish in wide zones in either of the last two home games. Against Villarreal, with the score 0-0, the Athletic coach chose to remove Vesga in the 55th minute to bring on Ander Herrera. He kept Beñat Prados on the field for about a quarter of an hour, enough time for Dani García to come on in his place.
In this clash against the yellows there was also on-the-fly maneuvering from the bench regarding the position of Sancet, scorer of the lions’ only goal of the day, for reference. Muniain got his place from the 76th minute of the game. A more than debatable penalty in extra time allowed Parejo to establish the final 1-1 from the penalty spot.
Double change and surprise
Galarreta’s return as soon as his sanction was completed resulted in the Eibartarran starting a double pivot against Granada. The surprise in this last match came from the absence of Beñat Prados, on the one hand, and the presence of Unai Gómez, on the other. The latter exercised a few meters behind his usual position in Valverde. Position seized again by Sancet.
The Athletic coach kept his initial bet in the midfield until the 62nd minute, when he chose to bring Ander Herrera into a double pivot with Galarreta, who ended up completing the entire match. The Bermeo midfielder, a fighter as always, doesn’t look comfortable playing a bit further back. Beñat Prados and Vesga, curiously, spent the entire game on the bench this time.
The most remarkable thing in terms of the movement of the gasteiztarran coach on the fly, with the score 1-1, against the Nasrid squad took place a few meters in front of the wide zone. Valverde, as against Villarreal, removed Sancet, but this time with the aforementioned Unai Gómez. His place among the Williams was occupied by Berenguer, although the Navarrese changed his position to the eldest of the brothers at certain moments. The match also ended 1-1.
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.
