Aitor Ruibal has become the fourth Real Betis signing this week, after those of Claudio Bravo, Martín Montoya and Víctor Ruiz, hours before the fifth was announced, that of Ivorian Paul Akoukou, who like the Catalan forward will have one of the 25 numbers of the first team. Nothing less than the ‘24’ of Rubén Castro – Aleñá took a few months last season – will appear Ruibal, who hopes that something from his previous owner will stick to him.
“I'm going to wear nothing more and nothing less than '24'. I will try to score many goals, like the canary, but there are many. Now I'm playing more on the wing, but I've always been a forward and I've looked at players like him. When I got here and saw him train … He's an incredible player, what a goal he has! I have always paid attention to him a lot and he is proud to wear that shirt. We are not the same, but I hope something sticks to me, he pointed out in an interview for RTV Betis.
“Staying here is a great joy. Being able to have a card with the first team is something that I have been fighting for until today and I am very happy. I think I have matured a lot in these two years, as a person and as a footballer. The first was in the Second Division and last year I was able to have minutes in the First Division and improve my game, my physique … everything, in general. I have tried to take advantage of my opportunity and here is the reward ”, said the Catalan forward.
Ruibal arrived at Betis Deportivo in January 2016 from Hospitalet and made his debut in the First Division in 2017/18 at the hands of Quique Setién, in a clash against Atlético de Madrid. Then he finished that course on loan at Cartagena, in Second B, before going to Rayo Majadahonda and CD Leganés the last two seasons, also on loan.
“It has not been easy to get to the first team. It has been a long road. I hope it lasts a long time, because this is very nice. Being in a city like Seville and in a club like Betis is wonderful. Betis gave me the opportunity to take a leap in my career and feel like more of a footballer. My purpose was to be in the first team and I went out only to train and mature enough to be able to return. What it feels like to step on that stadium cannot even be imagined and when you live it, you get hooked and you want more and more ”, he says.
“I really like to squeeze in pressure after loss. So regardless of how things turn out in the end, I think that work and struggle cannot be negotiated. My friends call me the 'Bull', the 'Buffalo', the 'Animal Ruibal' … if I have to stamp myself against a wall, I do it, and stick my head wherever it is ”, Ruibal explained about the nicknames with the that his colleagues know him.