Iker Guarrotxena finds happiness on the other side of the world

From Bilbao to Madrid, from Madrid to Istanbul, from Istanbul to Tokyo and from Tokyo to Sydney. Then, 14 days of quarantine before traveling to Melbourne, the final destination of his journey. Iker Guarrotxena (Bilbao, 1992) had to go to the other side of the world -literally- to smile again with the ball at his feet. After several years of troubles in Poland and Greece, the Bilbao player signed last January for the Wester United, a club founded in 2018 that plays in the A-League, the highest category of football in Australia. “I am a football geek and I wanted to get to know these types of countries,” he reveals from Melbourne, where Covid-19 is already history: “They managed to eliminate the virus at the local level and then they have made an effort to prevent those of us from coming from outside, we brought him in. That's why I had to quarantine for two weeks and spend up to three PCRs. We live a normal life here. “

The love affair between Iker Guarrotxena and Australia worked from the first moment. “Wester United was clear that he wanted to count on me. They think I can make a difference in the A-League,” clarifies one of the six Spanish footballers in the Australian First Division. “There are very powerful players. Without going any further, Víctor Sánchez is on my team, who has played 300 games in the First Division; Alessandro Diamanti, who competed in the Premier League or Serie A and played in a European Championship; or Berisha, who is the second top scorer in A-League history. And that's only in my team … There is a level and the games are very attractive, “he discovers before praising the other Spaniard on the team:” Víctor Sánchez is the teammate who has surprised me the most. I knew him from seeing him on TV, but when you see how humble and professional, how much he takes care of his family … Being with him is a joy. I could have come here to pass the time, but quite the opposite. It is a currela, a mirror in which to look at oneself “.

Despite having been in the country for a few months, Guarrotxena feels that it has found its place in the world. “Australia is wonderful and Melbourne is amazing. It has everything: beach, city … People are also very open, and that helps a lot. I am almost in love with Australia,” he says without omitting how much he is enjoying in the field: “I feel that I am in the place that I wanted to be for a long time. Not because it is Australia, but because of the atmosphere there is. The people are very professional and it is a pleasure to go to train. I have adapted very quickly and I have found the consistency I needed. ” So much so that Guarrotxena already rambles about a future in Australia: “I am very far away and I, who am very familiar, I miss my parents, my brother, my friends, my girlfriend … But I do I would love to live here for several years. I think, 'Fuck, this is my place anyway.' The Spaniard has the confidence of Mark Rudan. He has three games as a starter and he debuted his scoring account in the victory (4-1) against Macarthur de Beñat and Susaeta.

Precisely, Beñat and Susaeta were part of Athletic's first team when Iker Guarrotxena began to emerge in Lezama. He shared several preseason with them when Ernesto Valverde was the coach of the lions. “Susaeta is the footballer I've always been inspired by. We talked before and after the game because it is not usual to meet people from the next town on the other side of the world“, highlights a Guarrotxena who does not dare to discard his team from the fight for the A-League.” Last season they played the semifinals and nobody is going to settle for less. I am not saying that we are going to be champions, but we are going to fight because we have a very competitive squad and we are doing things very well, “he says after seeing his first kangaroos and while he plans to attend an Australian football game. Experiences he enjoys without the need to be 'tied' to a mask: “It is only mandatory in transport and supermarkets.”