Chapter 621 Southampton’s desperate counterattack!

Chapter 621 Southampton’s desperate counterattack!
The word Basque is not a place name, but a pan-regional noun.

The Basque Country consists of the Spanish provinces of Bizcay, Guipuzcoa and Alaba, and the Basques combine these three regions in the southwest corner and bordering the French province of Aquitaine with the province of Navarre. Taken together, as the birthplace of their nation, this is what the Basques call "the Basque Country."

Simply put, only players from this area with a population of just two million are eligible to become a member of Athletic Bilbao.

Of course, even if the native place is not the Basque region, as long as the parents are Basque, their children are also considered to be of Basque ancestry.

In football, other teams are trying their best to buy strong foreign players, but for fans of Athletic Bilbao, their Basque origins are what they are most proud of.

Of course, Athletic Bilbao has not always only used pure-blooded Basque players. At the beginning of its establishment, because there were a large number of British people in the small town of Bilbao, Bilbao also absorbed outstanding players. of British players as foreign aid.

This approach was spurned by Real Sociedad in the same city. Real Sociedad was founded 11 years later than Athletic Bilbao, but it was more radical than Athletic Bilbao at the beginning. They claimed that they were the real club. Pure Basque, while Athletic Bilbao is unorthodox.

Athletic Bilbao was very annoyed by this, so it began to reluctantly clear out foreign players in the club, including Spanish but non-Basque players.

This also once caused Athletic Bilbao to drop from the first place in La Liga to the middle of La Liga.

But Athletic Bilbao has no regrets, and their actions have also received enthusiastic support from fans in the Pan-Basque region.

Since then, Athletic Bilbao has never bought a player of non-Basque descent. Only relying on players of Basque descent, Athletic Bilbao has always stood in the La Liga with many powerful enemies. Has been demoted.

On the other hand, Real Sociedad couldn't survive early. They gave up their Basque roots and bought outstanding Spanish and foreign players so that they could still gain a foothold in La Liga.

The two teams, originally known as the Basque duo, have drifted apart.

Athletic Bilbao has never concealed its respect for blood. The club motto they hang outside the stadium is: "Why need gringos when you have the services of local talents and the support of hometown fathers?"

Although this sentence may sound a bit harsh to outsiders, for the Basques, this is their pride.

Although they only use players from the region, Athletic Bilbao is one of the most successful football clubs in Spanish history. They were founded earlier than Barcelona, ​​with 8 La Liga championships, 24 King's Cup championships and 1 Spanish Super League. Cup champion, this achievement also makes them the fourth-best team in La Liga history, and their experience of never being relegated is on par with Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Athletic Bilbao's policy of pure blood supremacy has achieved great success in history. The number of international players they send to the Spanish national team is second only to Real Madrid. This conveyor belt of talent even led the club to adopt an unprecedented transfer policy: adding huge release clauses to the semi-professional contracts provided to young players to prevent big European clubs from poaching the best Basque youth.

Of course, the current Athletic Bilbao team is no longer what it used to be.

First of all, after the Bosman Act was passed in 1995, there are no nationality restrictions on the transfer of EU players. Players from EU clubs transfer more frequently, and good prospects from all over Europe have been fully discovered and used.

Secondly, the Basque region has become the region with the lowest fertility rate in Europe in recent years. Although the Basque people are very fond of football, without the demographic dividend, everything is just a castle in the air.

Therefore, the current situation of Athletic Bilbao is also very difficult.

But they still stick to their football philosophy.

For today's game, the San Mamés Stadium, home of Athletic Bilbao, was packed with seats, almost all of them die-hard Basque fans.

Southampton faced a huge away disadvantage from the start.

After the opening, Athletic Bilbao also launched rounds of ferocious attacks.

Almost every attack, the Basque fans in the stands cheered wildly to the rhythm of the football being passed. In the 14th minute of the first half, Athletic Bilbao used a series of dazzling frontcourt coordination to deliver the ball to the feet of their midfielder. The midfielder looked at the space and shot into the near corner of the goal!
The football rolled smoothly into Southampton's gate.

Athletic Bilbao 1:0 Southampton.

I have to say that the cooperation between these Basque players of the same origin in Athletic Bilbao is really smooth.

The same culture allows them to only need a glance when communicating, which is much smoother than other teams.

Moreover, these Basque players are all brothers by blood, and it is easier to unite as one on the court. The team is very easy to lead.

Southampton had no better response for a while and could only defend with all its strength.

The confrontation between the two sides in the midfield area was very fierce, and both sides also made mistakes.

In the injury time of the first half, Athletic Bilbao relied on the team's smooth offensive cooperation and scored another goal, rewriting the score to Athletic Bilbao 1:2 Southampton. .

Southampton is also facing its biggest score pressure this season.

During the 15-minute break, Coach Adkins made subtle adjustments to the players, and Gu Ran was moved to the attacking midfielder position.

Shortly after the start of the second half, Gu Ran received a long pass from Van Dijk, passed two Athletic Bilbao players with a stop, and then went straight into the Athletic Bilbao penalty area.

The Athletic Bilbao defensive player tackled Gu Ran from behind.

Southampton were awarded a well placed free kick.

Gu Ran took the free kick, a full-moon scimitar kick and a fatal elevator kick, changing the score to Athletic Bilbao 2:1 Southampton.

Although the ground and mobile warfare failed to penetrate Athletic Bilbao's defense, Gu Ran's set kick was still unsolvable.

In the 71st minute of the second half, the constant sprinting and physical confrontation caused a lot of physical exertion for the Athletic Bilbao players.

At this time, it happens to be the relatively strong period of the Southampton team.

Southampton, led by Gu Ran, began a desperate counterattack.

In the 77th minute, Gu Ran distributed the ball from the left wing. Chamberlain passed up and passed to Salah in front of the goal. Salah rushed to push the ball. Athletic Bilbao's goalkeeper stretched out his hand to block the ball. After coming out, Gu Ran took the opportunity to quickly jump in and hit a high-altitude bombing header, which was sent into the net.

The score on the big screen was immediately rewritten as Athletic Bilbao 2:2 Southampton.

Southampton chased two goals in the second half!

……

(End of this chapter)