Andrew Hughes is going to Bilbao. Not as a tourist, not as a fan — as a set-piece coach for Athletic Club, the same Spanish side Marcelo Bielsa turned into a Europa League nightmare for Manchester United a few years back.
The former Leeds United defender signed on with new head coach Edin Terzic’s staff, according to reports out of Yorkshire. He starts next Monday, fresh off a World Cup stint with Scotland where he handled the same role.
Hughes isn’t a household name unless you were at Elland Road between 2007 and 2010. He made 139 appearances there, helped Simon Grayson’s side claw out of League One with a promotion in 2009-10, and generally earned cult-hero status for being steady, reliable, and the kind of pro who just got on with it.
From Leicester to the World Cup to La Liga
After hanging up his boots in 2015, Hughes worked his way through the English Football League. He’s had stops at Crystal Palace, Norwich, Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United, and Bolton. Most recently he was at Leicester City before jumping to Steve Clarke’s Scotland setup for the World Cup. That detour apparently caught someone’s eye in Spain.
Terzic, who took over at Athletic Club this summer, clearly values specialists. Hughes is a set-piece guy. That’s his lane. And in modern soccer, that lane matters more than ever.
For context: Athletic Club finished 12th in La Liga last season. That sounds mid-table boring until you realize they were only three points above the relegation zone. One bad week and they’re in trouble. Mallorca went down in 18th, and Athletic was six spots higher but barely breathing. Terzic needs every edge he can find.
A weird link back to Bielsa’s era
Bielsa only lasted two seasons in Bilbao, but he left a mark. That 2011-12 Europa League run still echoes. Athletic beat Manchester United 3-2 at Old Trafford in the first leg of the round of 32, then finished the job with a 2-1 win at home. Wayne Rooney scored in both legs and it didn’t matter. Bielsa’s team just kept coming.
Hughes never played for Bielsa, never coached under him. But there’s something fitting about a guy who spent his playing career grinding through the English lower leagues ending up at the same club where an Argentine madman once made Alex Ferguson sweat.
No word yet on whether Hughes speaks Spanish. But set-piece diagrams are a universal language.
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