_(cropped).jpg) Vesga withLeganés in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mikel Vesga Arruti[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1993-04-08)8 April 1993 (age 32)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Vitoria, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Athletic Bilbao | ||
| Number | 6 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Aurrerá | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2013 | Aurrerá | 25 | (2) |
| 2013–2014 | Alavés B | 8 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | Bilbao Athletic | 74 | (4) |
| 2016– | Athletic Bilbao | 196 | (9) |
| 2017 | →Sporting Gijón (loan) | 17 | (1) |
| 2018–2019 | →Leganés (loan) | 26 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018– | Basque Country | 2 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 20:23, 25 October 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 24 March 2024 | |||
Mikel Vesga Arruti (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈmikelˈβesɣa];[α] born 8 April 1993) is a Spanish professionalfootballer who plays forAthletic Bilbao as adefensive midfielder.
Born inVitoria-Gasteiz,Álava,Basque Country, Vesga made his debut as a senior withCD Aurrerá de Vitoria in 2012, in theTercera División. In summer 2013 he moved toDeportivo Alavés, being assigned tothe reserves also in the fourth division.
On 1 July 2014, after refusing a new deal,[2] Vesga joined anotherreserve team,Bilbao Athletic fromSegunda División B.[3] Having gained the confidence of coachJosé Ángel Ziganda[4] he was an ever-present figure duringthe season, appearing in 38 matches and scoring three goals as they returned toSegunda División after 19 years.[5]
Vesga made his professional debut on 24 August 2015, starting in a 1–0 home loss againstGirona FC.[6] He scored his first league goal on 7 February of the following year, the winner in a 3–2 away victory overRCD Mallorca.[7]
On 17 August 2016, after spending the whole pre-season with thefirst team, Vesga was definitely promoted to theErnesto Valverde-led side and was assigned the number 12 shirt.[8] He made hisLa Liga debut four days later, coming on as a second-halfsubstitute forMikel San José in the 2–1 defeat atSporting de Gijón.[9]
On 12 September 2016, Vesga extended his contract until 2019, with abuyout clause set at €30 million.[10] The following 25 January, he was loaned to fellow top-tier club Sporting Gijón until the end ofthe campaign.[11] He scored his first goal in the competition on 15 April 2017, putting the hosts ahead 2–1 in an eventual 3–2 loss againstReal Madrid atEl Molinón.[12]
On 4 July 2018, Vesga was loaned toCD Leganés also from the Spanish top flight in aseason-long move.[13] In January 2021 he agreed to an extension at Athletic running to the summer of 2024, with a release clause of €50 million.[14]
On 3 February 2022, Vesga provided theassist forÁlex Berenguer to score a late winning goal against Real Madrid in thequarter-finals of theCopa del Rey.[15] On 21 April, he closed the 3–2 victory atCádiz CF with a shot from outside the box, also beingsent off in the match.[16] A week later, he was the standout player in the defeat ofAtlético Madrid, with 15 ball recoveries and a 98% pass completion rate.[17]
Vesga scored twopenalties in a 4–2 win overReal Betis on 27 August 2023.[18][19] He again renewed his contract at theSan Mamés Stadium in December, to run until 30 June 2027.[20]
| Club | Season | League | Copa del Rey | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bilbao Athletic | 2014–15 | Segunda División B | 33 | 3 | — | — | 5[a] | 0 | 38 | 3 | ||
| 2015–16 | Segunda División | 41 | 1 | — | — | — | 41 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 74 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 79 | 4 | ||
| Athletic Bilbao | 2016–17 | La Liga | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |
| 2017–18 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7[b] | 0 | — | 21 | 1 | |||
| 2019–20 | 20 | 0 | 7[c] | 0 | — | — | 27 | 0 | ||||
| 2020–21 | 30 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 2[d] | 0 | 38 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22 | 32 | 2 | 5 | 0 | – | 2[d] | 0 | 39 | 2 | |||
| 2022–23 | 36 | 3 | 7 | 1 | – | – | 43 | 4 | ||||
| 2023–24 | 27 | 3 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 32 | 3 | ||||
| 2024–25 | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[b] | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 34 | 0 | ||
| 2025–26 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[e] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | ||
| Total | 196 | 9 | 34 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 253 | 10 | ||
| Sporting Gijón (loan) | 2016–17 | La Liga | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 1 | ||
| Leganés (loan) | 2018–19 | La Liga | 26 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 313 | 15 | 36 | 1 | 18 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 377 | 16 | ||
Athletic Bilbao
