#3. Inaki Williams and Sabin Merino tide over Bilbao's injury worries, temporarily
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The Basques so nearly held on to a draw that they did well enough to deserve. Inaki Williams up top was superb throughout, his pace and almost insulting directness terrifying the Madrid defence. Every time he got the ball, the Bernabeu held its collective breath. The 22-year old, though, needs to improve on his finishing. He had a couple of glorious chances that he missed due to this shoddiness in front of goal – to be fair to him, he did make those chances himself with his skill and relentless hustle.
Sabin Merino had big shoes to fill as he replaced the Basque hero Aritz Aduriz as the spearhead of the Bilbao attack. Aduriz is now 36 and injured, it is high time that Athletic Club found a replacement – and they most certainly have a promising prospect in 24-year-old Merino.
Bilbao though need to get their squad sorted out. Iker Muniain – easily the best player in Basque country – was restricted to a cameo, as was Ander Iturraspe. Aduriz meanwhile didn’t feature at all. This doesn’t bear well for the club, and they will be hoping that their best players can work their back to full fitness as fast as possible (and stay there!)
