'A grandparent does not qualify you' - Higuain ineligible for Athletic Bilbao

Athletic Bilbao sporting director Rafael Alkorta denied the club's rumoured interest in Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain.

Source: AAP

Reports in Spain this week claimed Athletic Club were courting the Argentinian forward and would attempt to sign him in the off-season.

Athletic, from the Basque region of northern Spain, famously only allow Basque-born players or those who came through junior Basque football systems to play for them.

Marca claimed Higuain would be eligible to represent them since he is the great grandson of a Basque who emigrated to Argentina, but Athletic director Alkorta shot the theory down.

"I wish he [Higuain] was born or formed here, but he does not meet either of those two criteria,” Alkorta told Onda Cero.

"A grandparent does not qualify you right now.

"I don’t know if it will one day, but right now it does not."

Higuain has dual citizenship with Argentina and France, as he was born in Brest, France, where his father was playing football professionally at the time.

The 32-year-old has already played in La Liga, scoring 107 goals across seven seasons with Real Madrid.

His recent seasons have been unsettled at Juventus, with two loan spells (AC Milan and Chelsea), and this season he's been inconsistently selected by coach Maurizio Sarri.