Whilst there are some teams who are so free-flowing in attack that they'll often outscore their opponents, it's often forgotten that they too have defences which allow them to play in such a manner.
Just 29 goals conceded by Athletic Club
Barcelona in last season's LaLiga would be the perfect recent example. 102 league goals scored, at least 24 more than any other team, but importantly only 39 conceded in those 38 games.
The club with the fewest goals conceded in Spain during 24/25 was actually Athletic Club de Bilbao though, with a paltry 29.
One of the central defenders that was part of that brick wall for Los Leones was Daniel 'Dani' Vivian, who has a contract with the club until 2032.
At 26 years of age, the centre-back is approaching his prime and Athletic will almost certainly be hoping that he continues to ply his trade for the foreseaable future at San Mames.
Premier League clubs circling for Dani Vivian
However, it's common practice in Spain for players to have release clauses written into their contracts, and it's believed that Dani Vivian's is as low as €40m.
That has apparently piqued the interest of Newcastle United and Manchester United, and with Harry Maguire being tipped for a move to Saudi Arabia at the end of the current season, the Spaniard could potentially be a ready-made replacement for the England international.
In the 152 games that he's played for Athletic, Dani Vivian has started in 136 of them, and impressively, 52 of those matches have seen him and his defensive colleagues keep a clean sheet, including 12 in each of the last two LaLiga seasons.
His tackle success rate has never dipped below 50% in any competition for the Basque giants, and was at a healthy 65% in the previous campaign.
Winning possession back on 970 occasions during that time, 559 clearances - that have included over 100 in three of the last four seasons - 165 interceptions and 233 headed clearances also attest to a defender completely in control of the areas that he patrols.
25 yellow cards and two red cards between 2018/19 (when he joined Athletic) and the end of the 2024/25 campaign sounds a fair amount, but when it's broken down into all competitions, that's roughly one yellow in every six matches - incredible for a central defender at the highest level.
He also excels in bringing the ball out from the back and distributing it, with a pass completion rate of 87.4% last season in LaLiga being one of the highest of his career to date. It has gone as high as 90.8% and has never dipped below 76.3% which is remarkable.
The one area he could do with improving is with regard to his success in one-on-one duels. Having taken part in 1099 during his time in Bilbao, he's won 568 but lost 531. To that end, his best return in any competition was the 57% from the 24/25 league campaign.
Harry Maguire has shown Man Utd his true worth
To give his numbers some kind of perspective, Maguire's 55 yellow cards are more than double in the same time frame.
The 32-year-old posted a 66.7% tackle success in the Premier League last season, and 70.8% the season before. More generally, Maguire hovers around the 50% mark, suggesting that he still has much to offer despite the regular criticism he seems to endure.
He's made 334 interceptions and 527 headed clearances, won possession back 1148 times and cleared the ball another 829 times.
In all instances, therefore, his numbers are better than Dani Vivian's; however, it might be worth considering just how much busier Maguire will have been in a defensive sense at Manchester United, particularly over the past two or three seasons.
Will Athletic increase Dani Vivian's release clause?
One other point to consider is the release clause.
Athletic would be well within their rights to renegotiate with their player to increase it, and even though it still may not put off potential suitors, they might think twice before making a bid.
Given how long, injuries permitting, that Dani Vivian would expect to have left at the top level, in today's market - even if the clause were doubled - it would still represent a bargain for an elite-level centre-back.
For now, of course, the status quo will remain the same, but when January rolls around, who's to say that some clubs don't at least test the waters and see what may or may not be possible?
After seeing the likes of Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino move from Athletic's arch rivals Real Sociedad, Dani Vivian might well decide that now is the right time to test himself in the 'best league in the world.'
