Ernesto Valverde (60 years old) is a special coach at Athletic. The one who has led the most games and victories, also the one who has him fighting to qualify for the Champions League and the coach with whom he recovered the Cup after a long wait. Ten years ago the lions already played in the first continental competition…and they also did so with Txingurri as coach.
Valverde will have a renewal offer from Athletic because the Uriarte Board of Directors considers that there is no better possible coach on the market. Furthermore, he is more than a technician for a board with a short media coverage: Txingurri often acts as spokesperson for the institution and is a reference for it. Athletic fulfills him and it is a club that he has called special several times and with which upon returning from the holidays he will fight for a new title in the Super Cup (January 8 to 12 in Arabia).
The coach has to renew his contract and will have clubs to choose from, since his good campaigns at Athletic have once again placed him on the front page of the market. In 2017, according to BBC and The Guardian, he was one step away from one of the historic clubs in the Premier League and now he will repeat. The Premier clubs have not lost sight of him and the tournament has always been a desire of the coach, although he has never hidden that directing Athletic is passionate. The offer of continuity will be for one year, which is the situation in which Valverde feels most comfortable. The renewal would allow the Board of Directors to cover the term with the same coach.
The red and white coach began his third stage on the club’s bench after Jon Uriarte’s victory in the elections in June 2022. Valverde would also have been the coach of Ricardo Barkala, who was third in the elections, while Iñaki Arechabaleta had Bielsa locked down. Since then the coach has been renewing it year after year. The first campaign signed the extension in February and the second did so in May. With the change of year, the coach, like all players who end their contract, would be entitled to commit to any club.
