The Pride of Vallekas

Ahead of Rayo's game against Real Zaragoza, this is a quick piece on their tireless right winger "¡Ari, ari, ari, Toquero lehendakari!" It was the 2008-09 Copa del Rey semi-final against Sevilla. At the San Mamés, the old San Mamés, Bilbao were leading 2-0. But they were not safe - Sevilla had won the first leg 2-1, and a goal at Bilbao would keep them alive. Step forward, Gaizka Toquero. Fernando Llorente presses David Prieto and gets the ball off him, but the defender has blocked the only possible angle Llorente can exploit to score. Meanwhile, the other center back, Federico Fazio, is quickly moving towards him. He passes the ball into empty space. Halfway through the pass, Bilbao fans are already celebrating. Toquero made the lung bursting run from the halfway line and positioned himself perfectly for the pass. Fazio turns around and runs back to where he was - where he should have been - but it’s too late. Controlled with the left boot and finished with t...

This season, LaLiga TV has a new English commentator. This is an interview with him. You can follow Paul Giblin on Twitter here . A bit about yourself and your background I'm from Hull in the north of England and I moved to Spain in 1991 basically to work as a teacher (was out of work in UK and it seemed like a good idea, to do some work and learn a new language…). I got into journalism through luck, my aunt saw an advert in the local paper, I sent in a CV and the rest is history as they say… Actually David Beckham's arrival was a huge boost as there was more interest in Spanish football and I got into doing football commentary thanks to that…. That was with the production company Mediapro and they are linked to BeIN sports etc, so that's more or less where I am today…. Small issue of girlfriend etc apart.... How long have you been a fan of Athletic and what made you support them in the first place? I moved to Bilbao in 1992 and was sharing a flat with a bi...