Aritz Aduriz has issued a rallying cry to his Bilbao teammates to qualify for the Champions League Group Stage in August.
The Basque outfit finished fourth in La Liga this season to secure a return to Europe’s premier club competition, with the forward himself scoring 16 goals in a highly successful campaign.
Speaking at a Press conference, the 33-year-old praised the collective efforts of Los Leones this term and promised the team would go on the attack against any team they might come up against in Champions League qualifying.
“At the end of the day it’s a team sport,” Aduriz told reporters. “The feeling of being in a team accompanies you all the time. The assessment made of us must be more collective.
“Collectively we have been excellent. We have consistently been at an extremely high level throughout the year.
“It helps that everyone is part of a positive dynamic here and that has shown. My form has been a part of the benefits of this.
“We know that going into the Champions League won’t be easy. A qualifying tie against a very, very strong team will be very hard.
“We might draw a team of a very high calibre, be we are also very excited. Whoever we end up playing will definitely show respect to Athletic.
“We will do all we can to reach the Group Stage. We’ll draw whoever we draw and we will go for them.”
