With positive news coming from all sides, it seems the Barcelona deal to recruit Nico Williams is on the verge of completion. Mundo Deportivo looks back at three important players in Barcelona’s history who were brought in from Athletic Bilbao – Jesús Garay, José Ramón Alexanko, and Zubizarreta – hoping Nico can become the next Barcelona legend.
In 1960, Jesús Garay was the protagonist of a highly anticipated transfer, having already been a key player for Bilbao before moving to Barcelona. Despite being a tall central defender, Garay was known for his positive defense and outstanding technique. When Bilbao decided to sell a starting player to raise funds for the construction of the north stand of San Mamés, Garay was sold to Barcelona for 6 million pesetas, a huge sum at the time. So much so that after the north stand was completed, Bilbao fans named it the “Garay Stand.” Garay played for Barcelona until 1965, winning only one cup title. He made a total of 165 appearances for Barcelona, scoring 5 goals, and ended his career at Málaga.
Twenty years later, in 1980, José Ramón Alexanko became the second Athletic Bilbao central defender to join Barcelona. While this time it didn’t involve the construction of a new stand, the transfer in 1980 was the most expensive for a Spanish player at the time, with a transfer fee of 100 million pesetas. Alexanko played for Barcelona from 1980 to 1993, playing alongside Maradona, Schuster and others. He was also the Barcelona captain for the 1991/92 Champions League final, leading the team to victory. After making 518 appearances for Barcelona and scoring 58 goals, Alexanko ended his playing career with 17 titles.
Zubizarreta was signed by Barcelona for 150 million pesetas in 1986. His career was marked by Cruyff’s “Dream Team,” where he was the team’s number 1 and remained until 1994. Zubizarreta made a total of 494 appearances for Barcelona. The 1993/94 Champions League final, where they lost 0-4 to AC Milan, was the final chapter of his career at Barcelona.
Interestingly, Ernesto Valverde, the current coach of Athletic Bilbao, also coached Barcelona and won two La Liga titles, one Copa del Rey title, and one Spanish Super Cup title. With the coach and 11 (soon to be 12) players having connections between the two teams, the relationship between the two clubs has a long and rich history.
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