CD Basconia

Basconia

Full name	Club Deportivo Basconia
Founded	1913
Ground	Polideportivo de Artunduaga, Basauri, Basque Country, Spain
Ground Capacity	8,500
Chairman	Juan Ignacio Azurmendi
Manager	Ander Alaña
League	3ª – Group 4
2016–17	3ª – Group 4, 10th
Home colours

Club Deportivo Basconia is a Spanish football club based in Basauri, Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country. Founded in 1913 it currently plays in Tercera División – Group 4, holding home games at Estadio de López Cortázar, with an 8,500-seat capacity.

History

Founded in 1913 as CD Basconia, it reached the national level (Tercera División) thirty years later. It played six seasons in Segunda División (1957–63), but this was before the creation of Segunda División B.

In 1997 Basconia became Basque neighbours Athletic Bilbao's feeder club, not being eligible for promotion if the reserves, Bilbao Athletic, playing in the above level, did not attain the same goal. Several first-team players made the gradual transition before eventually playing in La Liga and European competition.

Basconia’s place in Athletic’s club structure means that the squad changes greatly each season. About half of the players move up to play for Bilbao Athletic, or go out on loan to other local clubs playing at Segunda División B level. They are replaced by graduates, usually 17 or 18 years old, from the previous year’s Juvenil A team. The squad is normally expanded further with new signings from the regions’s youth clubs, most notably Danok Bat and Antiguoko.

Although the players and coaching staff of the main squad are controlled by Athletic Bilbao, Basconia retains its own club committee and staff and operates several youth teams as well an amateur side (Basconia B) who compete in the Preferente de Vizcaya league, two levels below the first team. These other teams play in a separate small stadium in the town called Soloarte.

Occasionally the main squad has been supplemented by some of Basconia's 'own' players in emergencies - Mikel Rico was with Basconia when he appeared in one game in 2001. He left Biscay for a long career across Spain which eventually brought him back to the senior team of Athletic in 2013.

Season to season

• 6 seasons in Segunda División
• 8 seasons in Segunda División B
• 51 seasons in Tercera División

Current Squad

As of 22 July 2017^[1]

• = player was also playing for Basconia in 2016-17

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player * GK Christophe Atangana * GK Ander Iru DF Javier Alonso DF Asier Arana * DF Julen Bernaola DF Markel Bravo DF Mikel Kortazar DF Matías Lizarazu * DF Álvaro Mateo * DF Javier Murua * DF Deiby Ochoa DF Ibai Rodríguez MF Xabier Atxikallende MF Eneko Basaldua

No. Position Player MF Youssouf Diarra MF Ander Dulce MF Ander Egiluz[2] * MF Aitor Gandiaga * MF Gorka Garai MF Xabier Naveira * MF Antonio Salado MF Oier Zarraga * FW Alejandro Larrayoz * FW Jon Morcillo FW David Nates FW Ander Quintana FW Javier Rudi FW Andoni Tascón

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player DF Mikel Murgoitio (on loan at Gernika until 30 June 2018) DF Iñigo Sukia (on loan at Portugalete until 30 June 2018)

Honours

• Tercera División: 1956–57, 1984–85, 1997–98, 2002–03

Selected coaches

• Javier Clemente
• Joseba Etxeberria

Famous players

Note: this list contains players who have appeared in at least 50 league games for the first team or have reached international status.

See also

• Athletic Bilbao (first team)
• Bilbao Athletic (B team)

References

External links

• Official website (in Spanish)
• Team history at Athletic Bilbao's official website
• La Cantera De Lezama Unofficial website focusing on Athletic’s cantera teams