Athletic Club’s brilliant wingers Nico Williams and Inaki Williams are two of their biggest stars, and normally star players arguing tends to bring with it plenty of media attention. Being brothers though, their frustrations were put down to a mere brotherly tiff.
Los Leones ran out 2-0 winners over Alaves at the weekend, following a Gorka Guruzeta brace, but the pair were seen animated after the match, as Nico defended himself against Inaki’s anger. As he joined up with the Spain squad for international duty, Nico explained what it was about.
Nico Williams to Relevo:
"It's an play where I have it on the wing and I decide to shoot, and he tells me that I had to pass it to him. We were arguing about it, but it's a brother thing. We spent an hour later arguing in the dressing room."pic.twitter.com/NWp2DppugY
— Football España (@footballespana_) March 20, 2024
“It’s an play where I have it on the wing and I decide to shoot, and he tells me that I had to pass it to him. We were arguing about it, but it’s a brother thing. We spent an hour later in the dressing room, but we came home and made peace. It always happens to us. I am the little one and I have to keep quiet. Since he is the eldest, he always demands something from you,” Nico told Relevo.
+ "Pues juega tú solo".
– "Está visto que no se puede decir nada".#ElDíaDespués https://t.co/JUQEf9Atp4 pic.twitter.com/MEpJJsGe44— El Día Después en Movistar Plus+ (@ElDiaDespues) March 18, 2024
He was also asked about Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid, who was the target of abuse from Osasuna fans on Saturday.
“Vinicius is a great player, there are times when the fans take issue with him, but he has to learn that he is a great player and people go after great players. I’m not speaking about all the racist insults,” Nico pointed out.
Of course it is something that is close to home for Nico. Last season he closed his social media account due to racial abuse online, and his brother has also been on the end of racial abuse from Espanyol fans.
“He had a pretty bad time, it was against Espanyol. It’s not nice to be insulted for being black, but society is advancing and these things have to stop.”
After Vinicius, Inaki Williams has arguably been the biggest voice in the racism conversation in Spanish football, and the emergence of the Williams brothers has been a major step forward towards a more inclusive view of Basque and Spanish identity.
