Urtzi Urcelay poses with the shirts of Sestao River and Gernika in Las Llanas /
Gernika Club-Sestao River | Sunday 18:00 hours
The Sestao River midfielder will return to Urbieta and warns that it will be a “complicated” match, despite the fact that the black and whites are in relegation places
The derbies come to the Sestao River together. If last weekend he had to get away from Arenas in a vibrant duel for the lead, this Sunday at 6:00 p.m. he will have to travel to Urbieta to try to do the same against Gernika and thus extend his winning streak. It will be a meeting of arms to take, despite the fact that the sixties are leaders and the black and white are in relegation positions. This is how Urtzi Urcelay predicts it, who is now wearing the black-and-green jacket after three campaigns with the Gernikarras. No one better than him knows the two squads from the inside.
Urtzi Urcelay arrived at Sestao River last summer after completing a brilliant course at Gernika. The one from Trapagaran formed a magnificent duo with Eneko Delgado in midfield. Proof of this is that he was the top assistant in the entire Second Federation with a total of fourteen goal passes. That made Carlos Lasheras, the black-and-green sports director, focus his attention on the 27-year-old midfielder. He didn’t hesitate. “Coming to the Sestao River was a leap in terms of club and fans, it is an ambitious project that draws the attention of any player,” he argues.
Despite being one of the renowned signings that the Sestaotars have carried out in this summer market, he is not being a fixture in Aitor Calle’s lineups at the start of the season. He has played two starts and has come off the bench in three others. The footballer himself explains that “we know the level of the squad, we are 22 competitive players and we know that, if we are not one hundred percent, there is a teammate who will take your place”. Even so, he adds that “in the minutes that the coach gives me, I will try to show him that I can have a place in the eleven”.
The truth is that the start of the Sestao River is unbeatable. Five games, five wins. Which makes him the sole leader of the group. Urtzi Urcelay emphasizes that “there are five very prestigious victories, on fields and against complicated rivals, they have a lot of merit”. According to the midfielder, this great moment is subject to three factors that usually occur in teams that meet their objectives: quality of the squad, competitiveness in training and unity of the dressing room. “We are a great squad where we have all fit in very well and we all row as one”, he comments.
Now he hopes to prolong this streak in a date and an emotional scenario for the midfielder. “It will be special to return to what was my home for three years,” she says. Urcelay has “very nice” memories of his time as a Gernikarra, among which the promotion to this category and the Copa del Rey match against Eibar stand out. That is why “it will be strange to go as a visitor,” he acknowledges. Even so, he is convinced that all this will not affect him, since he tries to give the same importance to all the meetings. “All games are important and I approach them the same way, this one will be no different,” he says.
misleading classification
In view of the league situation, the forecasts suggest that the favorite of this Biscayan derby is the Sestao River. And it is that Gernika has not started in the best way. He is in relegation places with five points. However, Urcelay warns that “the classification does not reflect the potential of Gernika”. The midfielder sees “a very complicated match, where they are going to make things very difficult for us, it is going to cost us a lot to dominate and bring the three points”. To do so, he indicates that it will be decisive “to continue with our hallmark of being ultra-intense and conceding the minimum in defense.”
