Nico Williams’ mural in Bilbao vandalised again ahead of Barcelona move | OneFootball

Athletic Club have shown no empathy towards Nico Williams ever since news broke out surrounding his potential move to Barcelona.

The Basque club have started an all-out war against the Catalan outfit, determined to block his transfer.

While the club are trying to do everything it can to make sure Nico doesn’t join Barcelona, the fans have shown no remorse either.

Nico’s mural vandalised again

As reported by Mundo Deportivo, the hostile atmosphere surrounding Nico in Bilbao has taken another ugly turn.

That is because a mural in Barakaldo featuring the winger alongside his brother, Inaki, has been vandalised for a second time in less than a week.

Last Sunday, unknown assailants erased Nico’s face and wrote a message in Basque: “Whether you stay or go, you have lost respect.”

Nico Williams is receiving no love from Athletic Club fans (Photo by Ion Alcoba Beitia/Getty Images)

In response, the artist, Carlos Lopez, collaborated with Athletic Club to restore the artwork this past Friday.

However, the restoration lasted less than 24 hours. Under the cover of night, the mural was defaced once again.

Nico’s face was blotted out, and this time, the vandals added a highly offensive and aggressive message next to his name: “F***ing rat.”

This is another indication of the increased hostility Nico has been facing from his own set of supporters.

This does, however, work in favour of Barcelona as Nico would now be determined to quit Athletic Club at any cost.

Recent reports suggest the Spaniard has requested Barcelona to complete the transfer by July 9, just before the club return to training.