Athletic Club manager Ernesto Valverde hopes Barcelona will resist making a bid for their talismanic striker Artiz Aduriz.
Aduriz, who will be 35 in February, has been in sensational form over the last three years and is certainly a late bloomer into his career.
The ex-Spain international hit a hat-trick in Athletic’s 3-0 win over Rayo Vallecano on Sunday to take his tally in La Liga to 10 for the season and afterwards, Valverde was hopeful his form wouldn’t tempt Barcelona into a January bid.
“We have to hope that Barcelona don’t sign Aduriz because he represents the culmination of the way we play,” Valverde is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News.
“We are very fortunate to have him in the team – for every year that he passes, he gets better and better.”
When factoring in league and European goals this season, only four players playing their trade in one of Europe’s top 5 leagues has scored more goals than Aduriz this season (16).
For more stats on Artiz Aduriz, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
