The new year didn’t start well for Athletic. The lions had to settle their cup match against UD Logroñés, a mediocre club from the Second RFEF, in a penalty shootout and deservedly lost against Barça in the semi-final of the Saudi Arabia Super Cup. The streak of fifteen consecutive games without defeat was broken after the last game against the Barça squad.
Oihan Sancet did not participate in either of these two commitments. Navarrese was injured against Osasuna in the last official match of 2024 and did not recover to take part in at least the first two matches this year. “The player suffered a sprain in the internal lateral ligament of his right ankle,” read the official medical report sent by the Bilbao club about it.
A few months earlier, after conceding Girona’s goal during the lions’ visit to Montilivi, Sancet also went down as soon as he put the ball into the back of the net as a result of a “sprain to the internal lateral ligament of his left ankle”. To these two injuries, we must add another third due to a problem “in the femoral biceps of his left leg.”
The truth is that the absence of Navarrese weighs on the overall performance of Valverde’s team. A Valverde who used different alternatives to find a solution that allows him to alleviate the loss of the tall Navarrese footballer. Against Barça on Wednesday, without going further, he picked Unai Gómez in midfield. In Logroño a few days before he used the always versatile Berenguer. Djaló also had some minutes in certain sets in that area.
the numbers sing
The truth is that between one reason and another, Sancet does not have the necessary continuity to fully exploit his indisputable physical and technical conditions. And Valverde has been able to rely on his services in 20 of the 27 official matches that Athletic have played so far: 16 in the Liga and four in the Europa League. Their absences also extend to the Cup and Super Cup.
The lions won only two of the seven games they played without Navarrese on the field. The victories coincided with the visit of Espanyol to San Mamés and the rojiblancos to Ludogorets. Draws came against Sevilla at San Mamés, Valladolid at Zorrilla, Roma at Italy and UD Logroñés at Las Gaunas, although this last match was settled from the penalty shootout. The only defeat came in the last match of the lions against Barça in the Super Cup.
Sancet’s importance to the team also goes beyond the scoring aspect. Navarrese is currently the team’s leading scorer in all competitions played so far. Two of his seven goals in the League only served to cover the defeat: against Barça at Montjuïc and against Girona at Montilivi. The rojiblancos went down 2-1 in both scenarios.
On the other side it was his five goals that allowed Athletic to score points. His goal against Real decided the derby (1-0) and the same thing happened with his pair of Vallecas goals against Rayo (1-2). Against Getafe his goal served to add a point (1-1) and against Las Palmas to finally win (2-3). Against AZ in the Europa League, his goal helped complete the victory (2-0).
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.
