Full name Iñaki Williams Arthuer Playing position 2009–2012 Pamplona Weight 77 kg | Place of birth Bilbao, Spain Number 11 Height 1.86 m | |
Date of birth (1994-06-15) 15 June 1994 (age 22) Parents Félix Williams, María Arthuer Current teams Athletic Bilbao (#11 / Forward), Spain national football team, Spain national under-21 football team (Forward) Nationality Spanish, Ghanaian, Liberian Similar Aritz Aduriz, Aymeric Laporte, Mikel Balenziaga, Raúl García, Beñat Etxebarria Profiles | ||
Iñaki Williams Arthuer (born 15 June 1994) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Athletic Bilbao as a forward.
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Club career
Born in Bilbao, Biscay to a Ghanaian father and a Liberian mother, Williams spent much of his childhood in Pamplona and was playing youth football with local CD Pamplona in 2012 when he was spotted by Athletic Bilbao, who signed him to their youth setup at Lezama at the age of 18. He spent his first season with the Juvenil A side and made a big impression, scoring at the rate of almost a goal a game (eventually ending with 36); the team finished runners-up in the Copa del Rey Juvenil de Fútbol, and on 25 June 2013 he signed a new contract with the Basque club, running until 2017.
Williams began 2013–14 playing with CD Basconia, the farm team who competed in Tercera División. After suffering a knee injury in August, he returned to activity in October, made his debut as a senior and marked it with a goal. He was immediately called upon by the reserves in Segunda División B and by the end of the same month had played his first match and scored his first goals at that level; he spent the campaign alternating between both squads.
At the start of 2014–15, Williams scored a hat-trick for Bilbao Athletic in a 4–0 win over SD Amorebieta, and followed this on 7 September 2014 with another treble in a 5–1 rout of SD Leioa. Despite only playing the first half of the season, his 13 goals from 18 appearances helped the team ascend to Segunda División.
On 6 December 2014, after profitting from Aritz Aduriz's injury, Williams made his first-team – and La Liga – debut, starting in a 0–1 home loss against Córdoba CF. He netted his first goal on 19 February of the following year, starting and contributing to a 2–2 draw at Torino F.C. for the UEFA Europa League's round-of-32, becoming in the process the first black player to score for the club.
On 17 May 2015, Williams scored his first goal in the top flight, netting a last-minute winner in a 3–2 away success over Elche CF to help Athletic come from behind 0–2. Thirteen days later, he headed a consolation goal in the 1–3 loss to FC Barcelona in the final of the Copa del Rey at the Camp Nou.
Williams scored a brace before giving away a penalty in Athletic's 3–1 win away to Real Betis, on 1 November 2015. He repeated the feat the following match, at home against FK Partizan in the Europa League group stage (5–1). Finding the net in his third match running, he scored "a phenomenal volley" to help beat RCD Espanyol 2–1 at the San Mamés.
In late January 2016, having been scouted by the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City, Williams agreed to an extension of his contract until 2021. The deal included a €50 million buyout clause. He was sent off on 6 February at the end of a goalless home draw with Villarreal CF, together with opponent Daniele Bonera.
International career
On 20 March 2015, Williams received his first international call-up, being named in Albert Celades' Spain under-21 squad for friendlies with Norway and Belarus. He made his debut on the 26th against the former, replacing goalscorer Munir El Haddadi at half-time of a 2–0 friendly win in Cartagena.
Williams was one of 11 stand-by players for Vicente del Bosque's Spain squad at UEFA Euro 2016. Around the same time, he was also coveted by the Ghanaian national team by their Spanish scout Gerard Nus. He made his debut for the former on 29 May, replacing fellow debutant Marco Asensio at the hour mark of a 3–1 friendly defeat of Bosnia and Herzegovina.