Hugo Rincón still searching for his place at Athletic | OneFootball

Hugo Rincón, 23, has not played since starting at the Camp Nou on 27 August. He faces at least 44 days out, with 10 October at 14:00 in Vallecas the next chance to stake his claim.

El Correo reports that Lekue’s retirement and loans for Gorosabel and Adama, the latter to West Ham, opened space at full-back. Even so, Edin Terzic currently prefers Areso and, when rotating or chasing a game, has turned to Johaneko on the left.

Rincón moved from Osasuna’s academy to Athletic in 2018, then impressed at Mirandés in Segunda, going close to promotion and earning a top-flight move. At Girona under Míchel he was important in a season that ended in relegation, before finally getting his chance back in Bilbao.

He debuted at San Mamés with the final 15 minutes against Sevilla, then started five days later at Barcelona, a 2-0 defeat in which Unai Simón prevented heavier damage. It remains the leaders’ lowest tally, who have 31 goals in seven, averaging 4.43.

Since then, against Celta, Atlético, Elche and Alavés, he has not featured and is the least used full-back after six games. Minutes so far read Yuri 367, Areso 344, Johaneko 166, 75 of them at right-back, and Rincón 106.

He was not due to start at the Ciutat de Valencia, where heavy rain complicated a line-up packed with changes. The three-week Liga pause now offers him time to persuade Terzic before Rayo return to Vallecas from their enforced stint in Leganés.

Source: El Correo

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”