Athletic Goalkeeper Agirrezabala Returns for Barcelona Clash

Julen Agirrezabala is back in the Athletic Club squad for their upcoming match against Barcelona at the Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc on Sunday. The Basque goalkeeper, who missed the last few weeks due to a lower back injury sustained in training on July 16th, has recovered and is included in Ernesto Valverde’s 23-man squad.

Valverde, however, is also taking two other goalkeepers, Unai Simón Padilla and Alex Remiro Gastesi, to the Catalan capital. "Julen joined training yesterday and the day before," the coach explained. "He completed a full training session today, and he’s been improving. We believe he is ready to play, although I have three goalkeepers with me, he is in good shape."

When asked about Agirrezabala’s fitness, Valverde offered a cautious response: "We'll only know for sure if he is fit to play when he is in the starting line-up, but based on his training and inclusion in the squad, he has a chance."

The only other Athletic player still recovering from injury is Álvaro Djaló, who missed the recent match against Aston Villa with a muscle strain. "Yesterday, he only played for a short period at the start of training, and today he completed the full session," Valverde revealed. "He still needs to gradually increase his training intensity to join the group with confidence. Today’s session was lighter. Tomorrow’s match is tough, like all games, and from my perspective, he needs a couple more days." The Vitoria-born coach is hoping Djaló will be fit for the game against Valencia on Wednesday.

Aitor Paredes and Oier Galarreta have been left out of the squad. Paredes sustained a muscle injury during the match against Getafe, while Galarreta is also dealing with a muscle issue that has kept him out of both pre-season and competitive games. Paredes is hopeful of a swift recovery, stating that "it's not too serious", while Valverde recognised the importance of Galarreta: "He started training with the team, but some minor discomfort arose, leading to his absence. The goal is to get him back as soon as possible because he's a crucial player for us. We saw that last season, the impact he had. Not going through pre-season always requires an adjustment period to get back into the team for competition, especially after an injury mid-season."

The full list of players for the Barcelona match, which also includes Iñigo Martínez De Marcos, who is ruled out due to lumbago, is as follows: Agirrezabala, Padilla, Gastesi, Unai Gorosabel, Dani Vivian, Yeray Álvarez, Mikel Vesga, Iker Muniain Berenguer, Oihan Sancet, Iñaki Williams, Nico Williams, Jon Guruzeta, Mikel Lekue, Yuri Berchiche, De Marcos, Unai Vencedor Martón, Unai Gómez, Ander Herrera, Asier Villalibre Adu Ares, Gorka Prados, Unai Egiluz, Jon Jauregizar, and Moubarak Adama Traoré.