From ‘Ghana must go’ to ‘Atletico must go’, Inaki brothers send Madrid giant out of Copa de Rey

Ghanaian brothers Iñaki and Nico Williams teamed up with goals and assists to each other as Athletic Bilbao defeated Atletico Madrid 3-0 to reach its third Copa del Rey final in five seasons on Thursday.

Gorka Guruzeta also scored for Athletic as it advanced 4-0 on aggregate after having won the first leg 1-0 in Madrid three weeks ago. The Basque Country club will play the April 6 final in Seville against Mallorca, which eliminated Athletic rival Real Sociedad on penalties on Tuesday.

“Iñaki and I have been getting along very well,” Nico said. “This victory goes to my parents who are in Ghana. Ghana will be a party.”

Nico and Iñaki Williams are sons of Ghanaian parents who migrated to Spain before they were born. They are among the few Black athletes to ever play at the club that historically fields only players from Spain’s northern Basque Country region or adjoining areas.

 “Nico and I have fought hard to be able to enjoy things like this,” Iñaki said. “It’s a night to enjoy and to be proud.”

There was fan trouble ahead of Thursday’s match at San Mames Stadium, with Atletico saying one of its supporters was hospitalized with serious injuries after an altercation with Athletic fans at a nearby bar.

Also, the start of the second half was delayed for more than 15 minutes as medics attended to an Athletic supporter in the stands. The fan reportedly had a cardiac arrest and was taken out on a stretcher. Initial reports by Spanish media said his condition was not serious.

Athletic is the second most successful club in the Copa with 23 titles, eight less than Barcelona. It last won the competition in 1984 but was runner-up in 2019-20 and in 2021-21, losing to Sociedad and then Barcelona.