Athletic eye the market: looking for another No. 9 after Guruzeta injury

Gorka Guruzeta has been one of the eight players to appear in all four Athletic Liga matches so far, but an injury has sidelined him and, as Mundo Deportivo reports, it has opened the door for Terzic to explore other choices heading into the next game.

In the season opener at San Mamés against Sevilla, the German coach took Guruzeta off in the 52nd minute and brought on Maroan as the striker. A week later at Barcelona, it was Djaló who replaced him in the 81st minute. Athletic lost both matches, and Mundo Deportivo adds that neither of those two attackers has returned to the pitch since.

The 9 spot question

Even so, the piece makes clear it’s not necessarily about immediately reshaping the XI for a straight swap at the top: Iñaki Williams has shifted from playing closer to the right wing to operating as the center-forward. Still, Terzic hasn’t had a fully dependable set of alternatives, because several other forward options missed at least one of the first four league rounds.

Heading to Elche

According to Mundo Deportivo, Terzic has leaned on Iñaki Williams, Sancet, Berenguer and Guruzeta up front—until the latter’s injury now changes the picture—when preparing for the clash versus Elche at San Mamés (the paper frames it as the match “in two days”).

Robert Navarro’s rise lines up with Athletic’s two league wins, while Nico Williams’ impact has grown particularly around the team’s recent trip to Atlético. With Guruzeta out, the need for another pure center-forward becomes more urgent: not necessarily to overhaul the whole system, but to ensure depth in a role the team is suddenly short on.