2003–04 Athletic Bilbao season

Athletic Bilbao
2003–04 season
PresidentIgnacio Ugartetxe
Head coachErnesto Valverde
StadiumSan Mamés
La Liga5th
Copa del ReyRound of 64
Top goalscorerLeague:
Francisco Yeste (11 goals)[1]
All:
Francisco Yeste (11 goals)

The 2003–04 season was the 103rd season in Athletic Bilbao's history and their 73rd consecutive season in La Liga, the top division of Spanish football.

Season summary

At the end of the previous season, head coach Jupp Heynckes left his position to return to his native Germany as manager of Schalke 04.[2] B team coach Ernesto Valverde, who also represented Athletic during his playing career, was promoted in his place.

Valverde's first season in charge saw a successful La Liga campaign, as Bilbao finished in fifth place and qualified for the 2004–05 UEFA Cup.[3][4] This constituted their best league placing and first European qualification for six years.

Athletic were somewhat less successful in the Copa del Rey, suffering a humiliating defeat in their first match at the hands of Segunda División B side Gimnástica de Torrelavega. This marked their earliest exit from the cup since 1993–94.

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

[1][5][6]

No. Pos Nat Player Total La Liga Copa del Rey
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK Spain ESP Iñaki Lafuente 5 0 4 0 1 0
2 DF Spain ESP Ander Murillo 5 0 2+2 0 0+1 0
3 DF Spain ESP Aitor Larrazábal 15 1 9+6 1 0 0
4 DF Spain ESP Aitor Karanka 35 0 33+1 0 1 0
5 MF Spain ESP Felipe Guréndez 3 0 0+2 0 1 0
6 MF Spain ESP Óscar Vales 2 0 2 0 0 0
8 MF Spain ESP Julen Guerrero 13 1 1+12 1 0 0
9 FW Spain ESP Santi Ezquerro 36 3 29+6 3 0+1 0
10 MF Spain ESP Francisco Yeste 31 11 24+6 11 1 0
11 MF Spain ESP Javi González 25 0 22+3 0 0 0
12 DF Spain ESP Jesús María Lacruz 25 1 20+5 1 0 0
13 GK Spain ESP Dani Aranzubia 34 0 34 0 0 0
14 DF Spain ESP Luis Prieto 30 0 28+1 0 1 0
15 DF Spain ESP Andoni Iraola 31 5 24+6 5 1 0
16 MF Spain ESP Pablo Orbaiz 27 0 18+8 0 0+1 0
17 FW Spain ESP Joseba Etxeberria 35 6 34 6 1 0
18 MF Spain ESP Carlos Gurpegui 31 1 29+1 1 1 0
19 DF Spain ESP Asier del Horno 31 5 29+2 5 0 0
20 FW Spain ESP Ismael Urzaiz 38 8 29+8 8 1 0
21 MF Spain ESP Jonan García 23 2 7+16 2 0 0
22 FW Spain ESP Joseba Arriaga 15 2 3+11 2 1 0
23 MF Spain ESP Tiko 30 6 29 5 1 1
24 DF Spain ESP César 10 0 7+3 0 0 0
25 MF Spain ESP Carlos Merino 1 0 0+1 0 0 0
28 MF Spain ESP Endika Bordas 9 0 1+8 0 0 0
GK Spain ESP Oinatz Aulestia 0 0 0 0 0 0

Results

La Liga

Main article: 2003–04 La Liga

League table

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
3 Deportivo La Coruña 38 21 8 9 60 34 +26 71 Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4 Real Madrid 38 21 7 10 72 54 +18 70
5 Athletic Bilbao 38 15 11 12 53 49 +4 56 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
6 Sevilla 38 15 10 13 56 45 +11 55[a]
7 Atlético Madrid 38 15 10 13 51 53 −2 55[a] Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round
Source: LFP
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head goals scored; 5th goal difference; 6th number of goals scored; 7th Fair-play points
Notes:
  1. ^ a b SEV 2–0 ATM; ATM 2–1 SEV

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Athletic Bilbao » Appearances Primera División 2003/2004". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  2. ^ "Heynckes neuer Trainer auf Schalke". Der Spiegel (in German). 17 June 2003. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  3. ^ "LaLiga 2003/2004 Table, Results, Fixtures - (Football/Spain)". flashscore.co.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  4. ^ "Qualification for European Cup Football 2004/2005". Archived from the original on 20 December 2011. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  5. ^ "Athletic Bilbao » Squad 2003/2004". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Athletic Bilbao » Appearances Copa del Rey 2003/2004". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 November 2020.