Estonian national team goalkeeper Karl Hein endured a challenging match today as his club, Real Valladolid, faced a humiliating defeat against Athletic Bilbao in La Liga, finishing with a score of 1-7.
Valladolid entered the match having lost five consecutive La Liga games, with a dismal goal difference of 3-22 during that stretch. Traveling to Bilbao to take on a formidable Athletic Club, which was sitting in fourth place in the league and hoping to challenge for the La Liga title, the task was daunting. Before today’s encounter, Athletic Bilbao boasted an impressive unbeaten streak of 15 games—the longest in the division.
Nuestro ONCE
— Real Valladolid C.F. (@realvalladolid) February 23, 2025
El 11 de Álvaro Rubio en Bilbao.
¡Todo por el violeta, equipo!#AthleticRealValladolid pic.twitter.com/mBjlEUxml1
The early minutes of the match provided warning signs for Real Valladolid. Within the first seven minutes, they attempted three shots, but their vulnerabilities became apparent. On their fourth attempt, Nico Williams skillfully maneuvered into the box and assisted Mikel Jauregizar, who found the bottom right corner and opened the scoring.
A remarkable save from Karl Hein prevented Athletic from doubling their lead early on, but the pressure mounted. Valladolid fans briefly celebrated in the 34th minute when Sylla appeared to score, only for VAR to rule it out for offside. Just a minute later, Williams struck again, this time scoring directly with a right-footed shot from the center of the box, pushing the score to 0-2.
The floodgates opened toward the end of the first half, as Athletic Bilbao scored two more goals, with Sannadi and Sancet finding the back of the net—Sancet’s goal marking his fourth consecutive game on the scoresheet.
The second half began with managerial changes from Valladolid, and it initially seemed to pay off. Substitute Moro assisted Sylla, who finally scored a legitimate goal to bring the score to 1-4. However, disaster struck in the 56th minute when Croatian midfielder Stanko Juric received his second yellow card, leaving Valladolid in an even tougher position.
In the remaining 30 minutes, Athletic Bilbao capitalized on their numerical advantage, scoring three additional goals: Nico Williams netted his second of the game, followed by strikes from Gurka Guruzeta and Inaki Williams, Nico’s older brother.
⎾7✕1⏋
— Real Valladolid C.F. (@realvalladolid) February 23, 2025
Despite the heavy defeat, Hein emerged as Valladolid’s standout player, making nine saves from 16 shots on target. This loss leaves Valladolid at the bottom of the table, with only 15 points from 25 games. Remarkably, today’s 1-7 defeat is not the worst Valladolid has experienced this season, as they suffered a 0-7 loss against Barcelona in late August.
Next up for Hein and Valladolid is a match against Las Palmas on February 28, who are currently in 17th place with 23 points, just outside the relegation zone.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
For tickets to see local players abroad, we recommend Sports Events 365 – a leading, secure platform for finding and booking football tickets around the world with almost 20 years of experience catering to satisfied customers. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram or YouTube for latest deals and updates.