1997–98 Athletic Bilbao season

The 1997–98 season was the 97th season in Athletic Bilbao's history and their 67th consecutive season in La Liga, the top division of Spanish football.

Athletic Bilbao

1997–98 season
President	José María Arrate
Head coach	Luis Fernández
Stadium	San Mamés
La Liga	2nd
Copa del Rey	Quarterfinals
UEFA Cup	2nd round
Top goalscorer	League: Joseba Etxeberria, 11[1] All: Joseba Etxeberria, 13

Season summary

The previous season, Luis Fernández's first as head coach, was a successful one for Athletic, as their 6th-place finish in La Liga gained them a place in the 1997–98 UEFA Cup first round after a two-year exile from European competition.[2] The Frenchman's second La Liga campaign yielded even greater success: Bilbao finished as runners-up, behind only Barcelona, and qualified for the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League.[3] This was their highest league finish, and first qualification for Europe's premier competition, since their last La Liga triumph in 1984.

They also had a good run in the Copa del Rey, reaching the quarterfinals for the first time since 1994–95. They were eliminated on away goals by eventual runners-up Mallorca.[4]

Athletic's UEFA Cup first round opponents were Sampdoria of Italy. The Spaniards took a valuable 2–1 win in the first leg in Genoa,[5] and secured passage to the second round with a 2–0 victory at San Mamés.[6] Their reward was a second round tie against Aston Villa of England, with the first leg in Bilbao finishing goalless.[7] The Birmingham side took a 2–0 lead just after half time at Villa Park, and a late goal from Javi González was not enough to prevent Athletic's elimination.[8]

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

[1][9][10][11][12]

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		La Liga		Copa del Rey		UEFA Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK		Juan José Valencia	4	0	0	0	4	0	0	0
4	DF		Rafael Alkorta	34	1	29	1	3	0	2	0
5	DF		Óscar Tabuenka	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	MF		Josu Urrutia	38	0	29+1	0	3+1	0	4	0
7	MF		Andoni Goikoetxea	2	0	0	0	0	0	0+2	0
8	MF		Julen Guerrero	33	8	25+4	8	3	0	0+1	0
9	FW		Cuco Ziganda	41	5	19+16	3	2+1	1	3	1
10	DF		Aitor Larrazábal	40	8	28+4	7	2+2	0	3+1	1
11	DF		Jesús María Lacruz	19	0	7+10	0	1+1	0	0	0
12	DF		Carlos García	41	2	33+1	2	4	0	3	0
13	GK		Imanol Etxeberria	42	0	38	0	0	0	4	0
14	MF		José Mari	16	0	3+10	0	1+2	0	0	0
15	DF		Patxi Ferreira	19	0	9+7	0	2	0	1	0
16	MF		Txomin Nagore	21	0	11+6	0	1+1	0	2	0
17	FW		Joseba Etxeberria	43	12	35+1	11	3+1	1	3	0
18	MF		Bittor Alkiza	44	2	36+1	1	3	1	4	0
19	DF		Mikel Lasa	35	1	17+11	1	3	0	3+1	0
20	FW		Ismael Urzaiz	38	10	23+9	8	2+1	2	2+1	0
21	DF		Iñigo Larrainzar	41	3	34	2	2+1	0	4	1
22	MF		Javi González	37	6	8+22	5	2+1	0	2+2	1
24	DF		Roberto Ríos	39	3	31+1	2	3	0	4	1
25	FW		Aitor Huegún	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
26	GK		Iñaki Lafuente	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
27	DF		César	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
28	FW		Mario Bermejo	3	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+2	0
31	MF		Gaizka Garitano	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
35	MF		Jorge Pérez	7	0	3+4	0	0	0	0	0
	MF		Raúl Gil	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

1.^ Tabuenka was transferred to SD Compostela during the season.[10]

Results

La Liga

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Barcelona (C)	38	23	5	10	78	56	+22	74	Qualification for the Champions League group stage
2	Athletic Bilbao	38	17	14	7	52	42	+10	65	Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round
3	Real Sociedad	38	16	15	7	60	37	+23	63[lower-alpha 1]	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
4	Real Madrid	38	17	12	9	63	45	+18	63[lower-alpha 1]	Qualification for the Champions League group stage[lower-alpha 2]
5	Mallorca	38	16	12	10	55	39	+16	60[lower-alpha 3]	Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round[lower-alpha 4]

Source: LFP
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion.
Notes:

1. RMA 2–0 RSO; RSO 4–2 RMA
2. Real Madrid was qualified directly for the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League as holders.
3. MLL: 9 pts; CEL: 5 pts; ATM: 2 pts
4. Since Barcelona, winners of 1997–98 Copa del Rey, was qualified for the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League, losing cup finalists RCD Mallorca earned a spot in the first round of the 1998–99 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.

UEFA Cup

First round

16 September 1997	Sampdoria	1–2	Athletic Bilbao	Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Genoa
20:30	Boghossian  74'	Report	Ríos  19' Larrainzar  62'	Attendance: 36,000 Referee: Ahmet Çakar (Turkey)

30 September 1997	Athletic Bilbao	2–0	Sampdoria	San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao
20:30	Larrazábal  40' (pen.) Ziganda  47'	Report		Attendance: 42,000 Referee: Marc Batta (France)

Athletic Bilbao won 4–1 on aggregate

Second round

21 October 1997	Athletic Bilbao	0–0	Aston Villa	San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao
21:30		Report		Attendance: 42,500 Referee: Hartmut Strampe (Germany)

4 November 1997	Aston Villa	2–1	Athletic Bilbao	Villa Park, Birmingham
20:30	Taylor  27' Yorke  50'	Report	González  70'	Attendance: 35,915 Referee: S. Piller (Hungary)

Aston Villa won 2–1 on aggregate

See also

• 1997–98 La Liga
• 1997–98 Copa del Rey
• 1997–98 UEFA Cup

External links

• Official website (in English, Basque, and Spanish)

References

1. "Athletic Bilbao » Appearances Primera División 1997/1998". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
2. "LaLiga 1996/1997 Table, Results, Fixtures – (Football/Spain)". flashscore.co.uk. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
3. "LaLiga 1997/1998 Table, Results, Fixtures – (Football/Spain)". flashscore.co.uk. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
4. "Fiesta en Palma" (PDF). Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
5. "Sampdoria-Athletic Club 1997 History". UEFA Europa League. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
6. "Athletic Club-Sampdoria 1997 History". UEFA Europa League. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
7. "Athletic Club-Aston Villa 1997 History". UEFA Europa League. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
8. "Aston Villa-Athletic Club 1997 History". UEFA Europa League. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
9. "Athletic Bilbao » Squad 1997/1998". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
10. "Athletic Bilbao - 1997/98". FootballSquads. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
11. "Athletic Bilbao » Appearances Copa del Rey 1997/1998". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
12. "Athletic Bilbao » Appearances Europa League 1997/1998". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 November 2020.