October 23, (THEWILL) – Marc Guiu enjoyed a dream debut off the bench on Sunday, netting a late winner as Barcelona defeated Athletic Bilbao 1-0 to move up to third in the La Liga table.
The 17-year-old was introduced in the 80th minute and calmly finished just moments later to break the deadlock. Joao Felix had earlier struck the crossbar for Barca, who were frequently thwarted by Athletic keeper, Unai Simon.
Both teams paid tribute before kick-off to Manchester United legend, Sir Bobby Charlton, who passed away on Saturday, at the age of 86.
Athletic started brightly with chances for Inaki Williams and Nico Williams, but found Barca keeper, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, in inspired form.
Ter Stegen made several crucial stops to keep Barca level, denying efforts from both Williams brothers. Ernesto Valverde’s Athletic side were left to rue their missed opportunities as Guiu pounced late on to give Barcelona maximum points and prove his readiness for regular minutes under Xavi Hernandez.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
