Athletic Bilbao Preview

Coach: Joaquin Caparros, ex-coach of Deportivo La Coruna, Sevilla and Villareal
Stadium: San Mames, Capacity (39,750)
Region: Basque Country
Nickname: Los Leones (The Lions)
Derby: Real Sociedad
Sponsor: Petronor
Kit Description: Home: A classic red and white striped Umbro kit with black shorts and shocks with red and white trim. Away: A blue and white half-panel shirt with white shorts and socks. Third: A black kit overall with red trim.
History: The club was founded in 1898 in Bilbao, Biscay. They are the third most successful club in Spain behind Real Madrid and Barcelona. They are known as the lions because the stadium was near a shrine to St. Mammes who was an early Christian martyr who was thrown by the Romans to the lions. The believe in the cantera policy which states that players who play for Athletic Bilbao will always come from the club's youth team set-up and the main qualifying factor is that they be Basque. The will sometimes recruit players from other clubs, but only if they also meet the criteria of being Basque. They were also one of the last clubs to have taken on shirt sponsorship. They carried the term Euskadi as a reference to being sponsored by the regional Basque government starting in 2004, but last year they took on Petronor, as they are a Biscay based petroleum company. They are one of only 4 clubs in Spain (Barcelona, Real Madrid and Osasuna) who are owned by their members or socios. Like the merengues and the blaugrana, Bilbao have never been relegated but they came so close in the 2006-2007 season.
Trophy Room:
* Primera Winners: 1930, 1931, 1934, 1936, 1943, 1956, 1983, 1984.
* Copa del Rey: 1902, 1903, 1904, 1910, 1911, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1921, 1923, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1950, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1969, 1973, 1984. (Second only to Barcelona)

Famous Former Players: Bixente Lizarazu, Joseba Etxeberria, Andoni Zubizarreta, Andoni Goikoetxea
Main Story from last year: It was a great year for the vascos, who surprised many in reaching the finals of the Copa del Rey only to fall against Treble winners Barcelona. They just recently faced the blaugrana again in the Spanish Super-Cup and lost again to the class of the Catalans.

Transfers: In: Zubiaurre (Elche - loan period ended), Díaz de Cerio, Xabi Castillo (Real Sociedad), De Marcos (Alavés), Mikel San José (Liverpool - one year loan), Etxeita (junior teams)
Transfers Out: Joseba del Olmo (Hércules), Garmendia, Iñigo (Numancia), Balenziaga (Numancia - one year loan), Murillo (Salamanca - one year loan)

Squad Overview: The club has been rebuilding, with some of the best young cantera players in Spain. Fernando Llorente is the sort of forward that people thought was only produced in England, big and powerful, a good header of the ball, except equally comfortably with the ball on the ground. He's first choice off the bench behind David Villa and Fernando Torres. Francisco Yeste is a club is a quality leader in midfield and Javi Martinez is a box-to-box midfielder in the Steven Gerrard mold. I like Susaeta and Amorebieta and even Aitor Ocio the defender but no one can deny the impact that a guy like Joseba Etxeberria makes. He is no longer a world class player like he was in his prime, first choice for club and country on the wing, but he is an inspirational leader for the minutes he contributes on the pitch and the hours he provides off the pitch. In his last season playing for the Basque Lions, Joseba is giving back to his club, playing on a free.

Prediction: Treading water: 11th