Nico Williams: his agent revealed the Barcelona power struggle

Félix Tainta, the agent of Nico Williams (Athletic Club), explained on the 'Los Fulanos' podcast how the Barcelona talks unfolded in the summer of 2025. The key point, according to Tainta, was that Barça “didn’t offer guarantees” to get Nico registered, and that made the whole move unworkable if he couldn’t play.

The agent also said Athletic knew what was happening “at all times” because he kept them informed, even if he claimed the club was upset with Barça’s “methods.” He justified the pressure on playing time with a blunt comparison: “Nico is a Fórmula 1,” and if the problem is yours, it can’t ruin his profession.

Previous summer and renewal

Tainta noted that Barcelona’s interest was already clear after the Euro and that, during the following summers, many clubs—“Barça, Arsenal, Bayern, Liverpool, PSG…”—were linked to Nico. As talks reached a point where positions had to be defended, the process shifted and led to a renewal.

Clause, loyalty, and ambition

On Athletic, he stressed that the club could understand Nico might seek other options, and recalled that they renewed in December 2023 for three years with the same clause. “We could have gone for free with an incredible signing bonus, and we didn’t,” he said, adding: “The kid was loyal to Athletic.” He closed by saying Nico was ambitious and considered leaving, but the final decision was to renew after reassessing the situation.