Athletic Overcomes Lack of Precision to Open Their Champions League Account

Sangre, sweat, and tears were required for Athletic to open their points account in the Champions League, but they succeeded thanks to a brace from Guruzeta and another goal from Robert Navarro. This was a sufficient yet modest haul considering the genuine barrage of red and white chances that followed the initial goal from the surprising Qarabag. The Azerbaijani team offered the traditional bouquet of homage to the bust of Pichichi, as any debutant at San Mamés would, and without further ado, they opened the scoring at La Catedral through Andrade.

From there, Ernesto Valverde's team laid siege, setting aside the rotations from the demanding duels against Arsenal and Dortmund to field an almost gala eleven. In the red and white calculator towards the Champions League knockout phase, victory was the only option, despite Qarabag's two wins in two matches, a true revelation at the start of this competition.

Nico Williams, starting for the first time after his injury and debuting in the top continental competition, was the best possible news for a team that suddenly found itself with a setback. The first minute had not yet passed when a misunderstanding between Paredes and Laporte was exploited by Andrade to face Unai Simón and beat him with a cross shot.

A cold shower for La Catedral, which Athletic tried to manage by taking control of the match. A good reaction from the lions, although lacking that bit of precision in front of the opponent's goal, especially in a point-blank shot from Guruzeta, thwarted by goalkeeper Kochalski, but also in a curling shot from Nico, loaded with venom but slightly deflected after hitting an opponent's body.

The red and white bugle call continued, and the barrage intensified with a header from Nico Williams and a volley from Sancet. The goal was stubbornly elusive, and Athletic was already guilty of some haste, a result of anxiety, when Jauregizar rubbed the lamp and left Guruzeta one-on-one with the goalkeeper, not entirely accurate in control but effective with the left-footed shot into the net.

Equaliser and relief, providential immediately after Iñaki Williams' injury and just before the break, to which a good Athletic should have arrived ahead on merit, but needed a huge volume of chances, with up to 14 shots, to find just one goal.

The start of the second half was a mirror of the first. More opportunities for Athletic, from Guruzeta and also from Berenguer, but without reward. Not even in front of the goal line, point-blank, with everything in his favour and with his chest, did Paredes succeed.

The match was played entirely near the Azerbaijani area, but the clock continued its relentless march with no changes on the scoreboard, causing red and white anxiety. Thus, with the Basque team forced to pour forward in search of the crucial victory, the game's dynamics tended towards a dangerous back-and-forth.

With everything up in the air, only 20 minutes of play remaining, and Nico Williams already on the bench due to necessary management, it was precisely Robert Navarro, his substitute, who was tasked with finally unlocking a hard-fought match.

Athletic, having done the hardest part, relaxed and slowed down. Enough for a Champions League opponent, a competition that does not forgive, to freeze San Mamés' pulse with a shot from Kashchuk, delicately over Unai Simón's advance, which Yuri cleared off the line in a split-second action. The left-back prevented the equaliser, and Guruzeta provided the final relief with a great volley from distance that sparked a definitive explosion at San Mamés, with a Champions League victory in the bag.