Inside Athletic

Bilbao Athletic closed out the first half of the season with impressive wins over Real Sociedad B and Alavés B and looked poised to build on the momentum. With Haro Deportivo visiting Lezama on Wednesday the Kumeak had a terrific opportunity to pick up another three points and move within striking distance of the top spot in the table. Bilbao Athletic may have won the first meeting 4-1 back in August, but this match would be very different.

Joseba Etxeberria’s side started the game well and established control early on. It would take just five minutes for Bilbao Athletic to open the scoring from a wonderfully planned corner kick. Jon Morcillo played the ball to Julen Bernaola at the top of the box and the midfielder’s shot was deflected into the bottom left corner to give Bilbao Athletic an early and deserved lead.

Just when it seemed as though Bilbao Athletic would start to dominate play, Haro would respond when Ibra Dieng drew a penalty from Dani Vivian. The visitors finished from the spot to level the score but it wouldn’t last long. In the 17th minute Morcillo’s cross found Bernaola with space in the box and the 20-year-old calmly beat the keeper to put Bilbao Athletic back ahead.

After the break the Kumeak had more chances to extend their lead with Oier Zarraga, Gorka Guruzeta, and Juan Artola all forcing saves from the goalkeeper. However, Haro would eventually drawl level once again in the 68th minute which quickly shifted the momentum back to the visitors. The match would be decided with the final kick of the game as Alex Valiño beat Jokin Ezkieta to give Haro a 3-2 win at Lezama.

The defeat to Haro was a disappointing result for Bilbao Athletic who had been in good form leading up to the game. Despite the loss, the Kumeak still hold the third place spot in the table and will have the opportunity to seal an important victory on Sunday when they travel to La Planilla for a match against Calahorra.