Inside story on Rangers’ Europa League opponents… Athletic Bilbao may have British roots, but only players with Basque connections need apply!

The walk from the San Mames stadium is one of the most affecting journeys in football.

The only rush is outside the metro station where some fans cram the entrance. The mass of supporters instead stroll down towards the Licenciedo Poza, locally known as Pozas, where glasses of beer or wine are sipped and pintxos, the Basque tapas, are scoffed.

It is all rather civilised, all rather unfamiliar to those who are attuned to leaving grounds in a more frantic manner and in less attractive surroundings.

It was a walk I experienced in September 2016 after Athletic Bilbao defeated Sevilla. The roaring mayhem in the stadium was swiftly replaced by animated chatter among friends who spilled out from bars on to the street where small tables accommodated their sparkling drink and wondrous snacks.

San Mames is a rallying point for a culture. It is definitively Basque in its flags, even its language. It is memorable to visitors because it proclaims football is important but it is there to be enjoyed, even celebrated, as a social occasion.

With Rangers and their fans the visitors on Thursday – for the second leg of a Europa League quarter-final delicately poised at 0-0 – it should be noted that there is much that links Bilbao with Glasgow. Both cities are post-industrial, changed forever by the decline in steel-making and shipbuilding. Both populations retain an element of grit, and both are football-obsessed.

There is much that links Athletic with British football, too. La Campa de los Ingleses is a shrine to football in the city. Confusingly there are three of them: one at the old quay, one at a park near the Guggenheim museum, and one a restaurant in the San Mames stadium.

The most relevant to the history of the club is the place at the former quay, that now has a plaque celebrating how Athletic were born. The term Ingleses is a catch-all. It describes the sailors and workers from Britain who played football on that patch of ground in the Abandoibarra area in the late 19th century. It is certain that there would have been Scots among them.

It is now a haven for tourists. Most miss the plaque. They are heading toward the spectacular Guggenheim Museum that sits on the Nervion river.

It does not take much scrutiny to detail the links between Athletic and Britain, The English spelling tells its own story. The early style of play tells another. Athletic were formed as a strong, physical team that played in ‘the English way’.

Yet there is much that separates Athletic from Glasgow football culture. Bilbao is a one-team city. The rivalry with Real Sociedad from San Sebastian is decorous, even friendly. The only major tension between the sides is what is perceived to be Athletic’s plundering of the academies of other Basque clubs.

Los Leones are insatiable in their pursuit of local talent. Much of this is driven by necessity. The club adheres to a rule that insists that players must have Basque connections.

‘This has become a looser interpretation over the years,’ says Pete Jenson, a journalist who went to Spain to cover the arrival of David Beckham at Real Madrid in 2003, and stayed on to become an insightful observer of the Spanish game.

The general rule is that players native to or trained in the Basque country can play for the team. Cynics believe that the borders of the Basque country have been stretched to suit Athletic’s purposes. The sons or daughters (Athletic have women’s teams) of the Baque diaspora also qualify.

However, the main gripe of competing clubs in the Basque country – most notably Sociedad and Osasuna – is that Athletic take the best from other academies. Athletic’s academy is called la cantera, which means quarry. There is resentment that the quarry lures gems from other mines.

The Basque philosophy was introduced in the wake of controversy. Sociedad claimed Athletic had used two English players in a cup match in 1911. Athletic denied this but added that they would now only select players of Basque origin.

This has become the distinctive mark of Athletic Club Bilbao. It has brought worldwide renown but also has an obvious limiting factor.

The football world now has generally free movement. Athletic are fishing in an increasingly shallow pool in one aspect as the birth rate in the Basque Country has declined. However, immigration has served up a substantial consolation.

‘The Williams brothers are the best examples of this,’ adds Jenson of Inaki and Nico. Their parents fled from Ghana in 1993. Both players were born in Spain as the country granted their parents asylum. Inaki was born in Bilbao and Nico in Pamplona.

‘Everyone saw how well Nico played in the Euros but his form has dipped this season, possibly because of transfer speculation and the collapse of a move to Barcelona,’ says Jenson. ‘But he can still get motivated for the big games and a quarter-final of the Europa League at San Mames is all of that. The brothers have a knack for shining in the limelight.’

Maroan Sannadi, who returned from injury to play against Villarreal before the first leg at Ibrox last week, is another son of immigrants who has impressed in Bilbao. The 24-year-old was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz in the Basque Country to Moroccan parents.

‘The most intriguing player, however, may be Mikel Jauregizar,’ states Jenson. ‘He is the new sensation.’

The 21-year-old midfielder is being closely watched by the elite in Spain and England. He was relatively anonymous at Ibrox but has the chance to redeem himself on home soil.

‘This is a very good Athletic side,’ continues Jenson, ‘although they appear of late to have problems scoring against a side that plays with five at the back.’

This belief is supported by successive scoreless draws against Osasuna, Villarreal and Rangers, albeit they returned to winning ways with a 3-1 home win over Rayo Vallecano on Sunday and remain fourth in La Liga.

Jenson says: ‘Ernesto Valverde is an excellent manager and the team have a strong identity. He knows what is required.’

Valverde, 61, qualified to play for Athletic because he moved to the Basque country as an infant. His link with the club is strong. He played from 1990-96 and he was assistant manager in 2000-01, manager from 2003-05 and 2013-17, before taking up the post again in 2022 after managing Barcelona.

His cool, intellectual approach to life and work contrast vividly with the atmosphere in San Mames but Valverde understands the demands of the job.

‘Athletic is all about the glory,’ says Jenson. The city still resounds to the celebrations after winning the Copa del Rey last season.

The triumph was celebrated by the players taking to a barge (La Gabarra) and sailing down the Nervion with what was estimated as a million people watching. It was a re-run or re-sailing of 1983 when Athletic last won La Liga, when La Gabarra was pulled down the river by a tug to extraordinary scenes.

These voyages pay tribute to a past when coal, ore and other goods were part of the city’s lifeblood. Football, though, has been its constant heartbeat.

With San Mames the venue for this season’s Europa League final, the tournament offers Athletic the chance to push the boat out once again.