Marcelino García Toral tempers the hype surrounding the younger brother
You already know what it means for a young kid to start football. Expectations grow very fast when you score a great goal or have a great performance. Therefore, the coach of Athletic, Marcelino Garcia Toral, wanted to give a reminder to Nico Williams.
The boy comes from the international break after scoring spectacular goals in training with the Under-21 national team and dominating social media mentions. Marcelino has wanted to be very frank by downplaying what he has achieved so that he keeps his feet on the ground.
Marcelino pushes Nico Williams to keep improving at Athletic
“Nico scored goals with the Under-21s, who are children, youngsters. It has merit, but to play for Athletic or in Primera, it is more difficult. That said, I think he is a player with great qualities. He has very good footballing qualities and he is daring,” affirms Marcelino.
“It makes no difference to him whether he plays at San Mamés or in Lezama. So, I think that’s a great virtue. At the same time, you have to know that you have a lot ahead of you. You have to work a lot, a lot. In addition, he has a lot of physical capacity as well. So you have to take advantage of the moments, every day, every game. Play with whoever you play,” he continues.
Putting the brakes on Nico Williams
“Play with the Under-21s, play with Athletic, play with Bilbao Athletic… because there, in that competitive response in different situations, is what is fueling his development. So humility and work. I think he has more things, but he can always have more and that is what he has to have, a lot of ambition,” continues Marcelino.
What seems clear is that the Athletic coach wants to make the most of Nico Williams. “But he is a boy we trust and, at his age, he has already played minutes. If he continues in this dynamic, he will also have more opportunities,” concludes the Asturian, dampening the euphoria a bit.