Catalonia 0-1 Basque Country: Aduriz nets winner

Catalonia's Aleix Vidal shields the ball from the Basque Country's Yuri Berchiche. Picture: Contributed

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BASQUE striker Aritz Aduriz scored the winner as the Basque Country defeated Catalonia in a friendly in Barcelona last night.

More than 50,000 watched the 34-year-old score the game’s only goal in the 39th minute at Barcelona’s Camp Nou Stadium.

Seven Barcelona players appeared for Catalonia including Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets, while the Basque Country had ten representatives from Athletic Bilbao including goalscorer Aduriz.

Players from Catalan side Espanyol along with a handful from Basque-based teams Eibar and Real Sociedad also appeared in the match.

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The clash, held on Boxing Day, marked the centenary of the first meeting between the two regions, both of whom are pushing for further autonomy from Spain.

Spain’s regions are unable to play competitive matches and tend to play a handful of friendly matches each year.

In recent years the Basque Country has played Bolivia, Estonia and Serbia while Catalonia has taken on Tunisia, Honduras and Argentina.