Asier Goiria: «The First Federation is a tremendously deficient category»

After last year’s relegation, Amorebieta has found accommodation this year in the First Federation, a category full of good intentions and plans that experiences an impractical duality between the professionalism it aspires to and the amateur ways of many of its contenders. Asier Goiria, sports director of the Urritxe team, talks to this newspaper and reveals some of the keys to the season.

– The past summer transfer market has been one of the most intense you have experienced…

– Yes, I’m not going to lie to you, it has been one of the hardest. After everything we went through last year, it came together that there were some elections, that we started to make the team late… There were a host of circumstances that affected the team’s performance. Being a new cycle, if you add that many players have arrived quite late… Although it is not an excuse, we must work knowing what we want and with clear ideas.

– Has an inflated market been found economically?

– Evidently. No one hides that the market has been crazy, that it has been greatly inflated by certain teams that we all already know what they are. That soufflé has been going down and we have been able to go little by little putting together the squad knowing also that economically we are not a very powerful club, but we have enough sporting arguments to face that handicap.

– Are clubs like Amorebieta in this category?

– That is a good question. In the sports field, the Amorebieta is not superfluous. People have to see that there are teams that due to sporting merit can be where they belong. But you have to be aware that from the Federation everything is being a bit disastrous. This category is tremendously deficient for all clubs.

Untenable

– Talk about federal disaster. What do you mean?

– The obligations that a club has are extremely high for the rights that it acquires. If you have so many obligations but you don’t get any injection from anywhere because the Federation is not able to get money or higher income to make this much more attractive, then turn off and let’s go.

– In the category there are clubs with financial muscle and others that do not have as many resources.

– There has to be much more economic control in that sense, but if there is, everyone has to get wet and all the clubs must go in the same direction. And for its part, the Federation also has to make a much greater effort and a more serious and rigorous work. Everything is very inflated and this is how it is solved. Either more rigorous measures are put in place or this is doomed to the total failure of a category that is sportingly spectacular and should be taken care of. As it is, there is no one to support it.

– His diagnosis is not exactly flattering

– It’s been two years of competition. Last year Extremadura fell, this year Dux fell without starting… and we know that there are clubs that are going through a lot of financial trouble. On the one hand they are logical, because the category is deficient. But, on the other hand, you have to play with what there is, you can’t play with what you don’t have. Now, knowing that the organization and everything related to the First Federation is a disaster.

exhausted cycle

– Returning to Amorebieta, this year the squad is completely new. Why?

– I think the club, the squad… needed to get a little fresher. To be honest, having played in the Second Division, the players also have a different point of view about football and their future. Yes, it is true that there were some who could have continued with us, but they also choose. For me, the important thing was to oxygenate the locker room. All projects, more so in football, have their cycles, and I think that one was over.

– But there are players who have gone to direct rivals and even from lower categories.

– Life and football are choices. And choose one yourself. You have to respect those decisions, then time will tell if they are correct or not. It is true that we had clear four or five continuities that we wanted, and two are with us. Yes, I am very happy with the people who have come and how they have adapted.

– Why was Haritz Mujika chosen to face this new sports cycle?

– Within the organization of the club we have been tremendously consistent with various aspects, and one of them is the coaching staff. We were clear that we wanted Haritz to continue because he was a coach who suited us for this new cycle and because he could give us the tools to move forward. He knows the club and can bring the values ​​of the club to the players. In that sense there was no doubt and there is no doubt.

– Seeing the experience of the past course, if the results do not accompany, would your hand shake if you have to make decisions?

– I have no doubt that nothing like that will happen. Although this is football and now nothing can be said about what could happen. Last year, there is no doubt that we all had the feeling that the reaction was a little late, that it could have been done earlier. They are very difficult decisions. It was also my first dismissal. And we were united by a friendship and also a good job that had led us to the greatest success of the club. It’s normal for us to take a while.

change of philosophy

– This year the squad is not only made up of Basque players.

– That was a topic that at a certain time gave us results since it gave us an identity and a way of working that went well for us. But last year it was already seen that this policy did not go so well for us since we lost strength in many things that we had strength. In sports, we also did not have much help from teams that could have benefited from the fact that we were in the Second Division so that their players could grow. It was a ‘win-win’ that did not happen like that. And when you see yourself this lonely, so to speak, you have to change things.

– Did Amorebieta feel abandoned by Athletic?

– That would not be the correct word, since it is vox populi that institutionally helped us a lot and the club is delighted. Now, in sports there is no doubt that we wanted more. Selfishly, but also knowing that we are an agreed club and that we could have helped in some way the growth of many players. They did not understand it that way and it did not happen.