Athletic Club issue statement after Nico Williams mural defaced by 'disrespectful' fans as star winger edges closer to Barcelona transfer

Williams appears to be edging closer to a move to Barcelona after his agent met sporting director Deco for talks. Barcelona have already agreed personal terms on a six-year contract, and Deco has since admitted the Catalan giants are hoping to seal a transfer for the Spain star.

The transfer speculation does not appear to have gone down well with some Athletic Club fans, who have defaced a mural featuring Nico, brother Inaki Williams, and Iker Munian. The forward's face has been removed and replaced with the words: "Leave or stay, you've lost respect."

The issue drew a swift response from the Basque side and a strongly-worded statement published on the club's website: "Supporting Athletic means acting with respect. Athletic's dignity lies in its people, in its respect and in its coherence with its values. The dignity of a club is the dignity of the people who make it up and is measured by their capacity to behave in a coherent way with their own values, without falling into provocations or lowering themselves, and always holding their heads high. Respect is one of the fundamental pillars of Athletic Club. The summer has just begun and publications about Nico Williams, a player with a contract with Athletic Club until 2027, abound in the media and social networks. Along with them, an endless number of comments and reactions of all kinds. Nico is one of us. A player raised in Lezama, loved in the dressing room and supported by his fans.

"The dignity of a club is also reflected in the way it protects its own people. That is why those who have erased Nico's image from artist Carlos López's mural in Barakaldo do not represent Athletic. And if they think they are part of this family, they should know that they are wrong: to disrespect one of our own is to disrespect Athletic itself. The Club understands that the current situation can generate unease among Athletic supporters, especially when it is fuelled by rumours, arrogance or contempt for our identity. But to be Athletic is also to know how to keep one's composure. Supporting Athletic means acting with respect, not falling into provocations or losing our manners.

"The Club will defend its interests with determination and firmness wherever necessary, always faithful to its principles. But Athletic is much more than a sum of individuals. It is a family, a team, a community united by a special way of understanding football. And it is also a winning project. With a generation of committed players, with an exemplary fan base and with an identity that can neither be bought nor sold. Athletic has a present and a future. Because this Club will always go forward, with its head held high, with respect and with pride. With those who are here and with those who will come.

"Athletic Club has already contacted the street artist, Carlos López, so that, as soon as possible and helping him in everything he needs, he can restore Nico Williams in the mural, along with his brother Iñaki."

Athletic Club may restore Williams's image to the mural but he still appears set on a summer exit. Barcelona are expected to offload a host of players this summer in a bid to pay his release clause and register the new signing in time for the start of the new La Liga season.