It’s no exaggeration to say that loyalty in football is something of a lost art.
Given the riches on offer at the top of the game, it’s little wonder that the age of one-club players and stars racking up more than 500 appearances for their clubs is all but over.
But look hard enough, and every so often, you can find the odd story to make the footballing romantics smile. One such case came last summer, when Nico Williams opted to commit his long-term future to Athletic Bilbao, signing a ten-year deal with the club and eschewing the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Aston Villa, who had all been sniffing around.
Nico Williams on his ten-year Athletic deal
“In the end, it was a very personal decision,” Williams tells FourFourTwo when asked why he was happy to make such a commitment.
“You have to think about what you want in your life. I decided to stay because this is a family. This club will always be there in good times and bad. I’m happy with the decision I’ve made. I want to keep growing as a player and hope I can make history. That’s my goal here.
“Yes, there was interest from many Premier League teams,” he continues. “But I’m very happy here. I have very good team-mates, I want to keep making history, but I hope it goes very well for those teams.”
Asked to identify the one thing that separates Athletic from other clubs, his answer is simple.
“The closeness we have between the first team and the younger players,” Williams says. “That’s what unites us. In the end, I think we’re a very big team. At European level, we need to maintain the standard we’re at. In fact, we have to increase it, because we have the capacity for it. For me, that’s important. I think we have very good margin for improvement.”
There is also more to his love for the club than what happens in the team. “The connection we have with our fans is amazing,” he adds. “Those who haven’t been to San Mames have to experience it to know what it’s like. Many of my friends from abroad have come and seen it, and it’s incredible.
“Our fans are our driving force. In matches where we struggle, their encouragement gives us much more strength than we have at that moment – without them, we wouldn’t be capable of everything we do.”
The younger Williams brother - who played alongside his elder sibling Inaki at the San Mames - admits he has had to get used to the fame as well.
“You go from being a nobody to the whole city knowing you,” Nico says. “At first it’s a bit strange to have people taking pictures of you in the street or staring at you, but people have treated me with a lot of respect, always.”
“For me, Athletic Club are everything – they’ve given me, my brother and my family everything and always helped us. That’s why I decided to stay and try to make history here, and I’m going to try to give back everything that I’ve been given. I love this football club with all my heart.”
