Nico Williams recounts his parents’ amazing journey, including turning down Ghana and playing a league-record 203 straight games. Athletic Club is well-known for its academy, and it has thrived in that area over the last several decades, generating a plethora of local talent that has shined for the senior squad.
Approximately 85% of their players have progressed through their system, and they now have one star who excels for both his club and Spain’s national team. Nico Williams, Inaki’s brother, has excelled for them over the last year and is set to represent Spain in the World Cup.
Who Are Maria and Felix Williams, Nico Williams’ Parents?
Nico Williams was born in Pamplona, Spain, to Ghanaian parents who had fled the Liberian Civil War eight years before. Maria Williams is his mother’s name, and Felix Williams is his father’s name. Maria told how they left Ghana and trekked through the Sahara without food or water, how they might have been killed, and how they concealed items in the best possible spot.
She also told him about how she and Felix were jailed, and about a lawyer whose name he still doesn’t remember who provided them a lifeline and a route back to the place where he was born. It is the site where he wrote his history. His brother Iaki said in 2021 that despite the family’s lack of English proficiency, they could still communicate with their relatives in the Twi dialect of the Akan language.
Meet Nico Williams’ brother, Iaki Williams.
Iaki Williams Arthuer, Nico Williams’ elder brother, is a striker for Ghana’s national team and La Liga club Athletic Bilbao. He grew up in Athletic Bilbao’s youth and has appeared in over 350 first-team games for the club, establishing a La Liga record for the most consecutive games played with over 240. Williams, a Ghanaian-born Spaniard, made his debut for Spain’s national team in 2016. He opted to represent Ghana internationally in 2022 by participating in the World Cup.
Williams was given a Basque first name in commemoration of a Caritas Internationalis staff member located in Bilbao who aided Williams’ parents when they landed in Spain in the year of his birth. Williams appeared in the 2017-2018 season of Amazon Prime’s television documentary series Six Dreams.
Nico Williams’ Career
Williams, a 20-year-old offensive prodigy in the Spanish league, has succeeded for both club and country in his brief career. He is regarded for what he provides to his individual clubs as a dynamic attacker with outstanding ball control who can succeed on both flanks in the future. Many teams in Europe are interested in Williams’ straightforward approach and ability to defeat a player swiftly.
Off the ball, he uses his speed well by making rapid bursts into small areas and racing smartly to assist his teammates in anticipation of a likely pass. He is praised for his positive attitude and eagerness to work hard for the squad. He is also noted for his exceptional ability to restore ball control after losing it. Athletic Club coach Ernesto Valverde feels Williams can improve: “Nico Williams is one more in the squad, and we value him the same as the other players.” We already know that when young individuals are expected to have enormous future potential, their balloons rise dramatically.
