3 months ago
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Nico Williams has made a big decision over his future as he continues to be linked with Barcelona, Arsenal and Chelsea.
The 22-year-old winger had already emerged as a target for some of the biggest clubs in the world but saw his reputation grow even further during Spain’s successful Euro 2024 campaign.
Williams was one of the stars of the tournament and scored in Spain’s 2-1 final win over England to help his nation secure a record fourth European Championship crown.
Barcelona stepped up their interest in Williams after Euro 2024, while Premier League rivals Arsenal and Chelsea are still eyeing moves for the Athletic Bilbao star.
Williams said he was relaxed about his future during the Euros and told his representatives not to contact him about any transfer news as he wanted to focus on the tournament.
And according to Marca, Williams has already decided to spend at least one more season at Bilbao despite the interest from clubs in Spain and England.
Discussing his future and interest from other clubs during the Euros, Williams said: ‘In the end, my brother [Athletic team-mate Inaki Williams] is a very important person for me. He has lived a similar situation to mine.
‘He has also had offers from outside Athletic, but I said that I didn’t want to know anything about what comes from outside, about signings or stories.
‘They know what I am like, the personality I have, and I don’t like to know because I get distracted easily. I prefer to focus on one thing and go for it.
‘Because if one thing or another comes to me, in the end my head doesn’t work very well.
‘My agent, my parents and my family know me perfectly and they know that I don’t want to hear anything until the Euros are over.’
Athletic Bilbao president Jon Uriarte criticised the persistent questions Williams has faced over his future during Spain’s Euro 2024 campaign.
‘Nico is very committed to Athletic Bilbao,’ he said. ‘He has been subjected to a bombardment of questions about his future in an excessive and uncontrolled manner while on international duty at Euro 2024.
‘The Spanish Federation does not know how to protect him.
‘Respect between all the members of the football club is key, or at least that is the case at Athletic Club, which does not have as a strategy of subjecting players contracted to other clubs to public pressure in order to try to incorporate them,’ he added.
‘Athletic Bilbao aim for the maximum, without limits. We are showing that we have a winning project for footballers and coaches.
‘We have renewed the contracts of players who are playing at the European Championship, such as Unai Simon and Vivian, as well as coveted players like [Benat] Prados, Oihan [Sancet], Julen [Agirrezabala] or [Aitor] Paredes, who have also signed for several seasons.
‘Athletic Bilbao is economically, socially and sportingly capable of keeping footballers of the calibre of those named in its structure, including Nico Williams.’
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