Former Athletic Club captain Iker Muniain remains without a club after leaving at the end of his contract this summer, but was dealt a disappointing blow on Tuesday night. River Plate President Jorge Brito confirmed he would not be making his dream move this summer.
Muniain is a self-proclaimed River fan, and has previously spoken about his desire to move to Buenos Aires and feature at El Monumental. Available as a free agent this summer, the two have been heavily linked this summer. Brito told ESPN (via Diario AS) that Muniain would have to look elsewhere.
“Maybe what happened with Iker became public, but it happened to us with many high-level players who wanted to come. Many factors have to occur. The first is that the player who wants to come can arrive in the position that one needs and that the coach considers that it is the desired one.”
“There was also no foreigner spot. But there was never a negotiation or a talk for it to get to a serious level.”
River changed managers during the summer from Martin Demichelis, with Marcelo Gallardo returning from Saudi Arabia, which could have played a role too. It seems likely that Muniain might leave European football, although there is little clarity on where he might go next. The 32-year-old arrived at Athletic as an 11-year-old, and has spent his entire career there.
