Inaki Williams, the record: 251 games in a row always on the field

And after 251 matches, Iñaki Williams stopped. The Basque’s incredible run ended today. The Athletic Bilbao player who emerged bruised from Thursday’s Copa del Rey match in Valencia was not called up for the Liga match against Celta (which Athletic lost 1-0) and thus for the first time since 2016 l The striker of the Ghanaian national team missed a league game. The last time the eldest of the Williams brothers hadn’t taken the field in La Liga with Athletic was on April 17, 2016, almost 5 years ago.

the strip

—

Since then Iñaki had played in every match, reaching 251 consecutive matches and breaking the previous record set by Juan Antonio Larrañaga which stood at 202. Further back the goalkeepers Arconada (188) and Zubizarreta (182). Curiously, these are four Basques. Williams’ record is sensational if you consider that Iñaki is a striker and has a powerful and fast physique: it’s easy to think that in 5 years a muscle can skip, or a blow received can cause you to lose a game. It finally happened, but after 1174 days of consecutive activity.