One goal in 28 league games. On a stat sheet, that line makes Adrián Pérez look like a winger who went missing. It isn't the full picture. He spent 2025/26 as a teenager playing week in, week out in the Primera Federación, a league full of grown men who'd happily end a young attacker's afternoon early. At Athletic Club, where the academy is the whole philosophy, being trusted that often at that age says more than the goal column does.
Pérez turns 20 in late October 2026. He's at the stage where a Lezama product either kicks on or quietly drifts. Nobody can tell you yet which way he'll go. What we can do is read what he's done so far honestly.
Pérez in Brief
| Full name | Adrián Pérez Sordo |
|---|---|
| Born | October 25, 2006, in Bilbao, Biscay |
| Age | 19 (20 from late October 2026) |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Height | Listed at roughly 1.76 m to 1.78 m |
| Positions | Right winger, attacking midfielder |
| Stronger foot | Right |
| Club | Bilbao Athletic (Athletic Club's reserve side) |
| Shirt number | 33 |
| Contract | Reported to run until June 2027 |
| Reported market value | Around €1 million |
| Estimated net worth | US$200,000 to US$500,000 (Icon Polls estimate) |
Danok Bat to Lezama
Pérez is a local story in the most literal sense. Born in Bilbao, he started out at Danok Bat, one of the city's well known youth clubs, before moving into Athletic's academy at a young age. For a club that builds its first team around players from the Basque football world, that background isn't a footnote. It's the entry ticket.
It is not, however, a guarantee. Lezama turns out plenty of good players who never become Athletic players. Being from the right place gets you in the door. Everything after that has to be earned against teammates who are from the right place too.
Three Rungs of the Ladder
His route up has been the classic Athletic one, and the numbers at each step tell a tidy story about adjustment.
- Under-18s, 2023/24: 10 goals. At youth level, he had end product.
- Basconia, 2024/25: four goals in 10 league games, a strong return at the club's second affiliated side.
- Bilbao Athletic, 2024/25: three goals in 14 league games in the same season, which is what earned him a longer look.
- Bilbao Athletic, 2025/26: 28 league appearances and one goal, plus one goal in two UEFA Youth League games.
Read that sequence top to bottom and the shape is familiar. Goals flow at lower levels, then dry up once the minutes become regular and the opponents get stronger. That's not a red flag on its own. It's the exact gap every academy attacker has to close.
The One-Goal Season, in Context
Here's the case for the defence. A right-sided attacking midfielder in a reserve team isn't paid to be a pure finisher. His afternoons involve carrying the ball through midfield, linking the full back with the striker, pressing when possession is lost and drawing defenders so someone else gets the shot. Those things rarely make a stats summary.
And the fact he played 28 league games matters. Reserve coaches at Athletic are developing players for the first team, but they're also trying to stay competitive in a tough third tier. They don't hand that many appearances to someone who is costing them results.
Now the honest part. Wide attackers who reach the top eventually have to decide games, not just take part in them. A player with his youth record should be pushing for a handful of goals and assists at this level, and one league goal across a full season leaves room for improvement. That's the fair verdict: trusted, involved and useful, but not yet decisive.
Salary Unknown, Value Reported
His wages aren't public, and we won't pretend otherwise. Reserve and academy deals at big Spanish clubs often mix a base salary with bonuses and clauses that change if a player steps up to the first team, so any exact figure floating around online should be treated with suspicion.
Icon Polls estimates his net worth at US$200,000 to US$500,000. That range reflects what a young professional in a major La Liga club's structure typically earns, along with his reported contract and rising profile. It's an educated estimate, not a bank statement.
His reported market value sits around €1 million. That's an outside assessment of his age, position, contract and potential, not a release clause or a bid anyone has made. The contract, reportedly through June 2027, is the more interesting detail. It gives Athletic control for now, but it also means this season carries some weight for both sides.
The Name Problem in FC 26
If you searched for his EA Sports FC 26 rating, you probably found a mess. There's more than one professional footballer called Adrián Pérez, and fan databases mix them up constantly, sometimes pairing one player's face with another's stats.
We couldn't find a clearly established official FC 26 rating for the Bilbao Athletic player on public rating pages. Your best bet is to check the latest official squad update inside the game and confirm the profile lists Bilbao Athletic and an October 2006 birth date. For career mode players, he's a sensible name to keep an eye on: young, versatile across attacking roles and attached to a club that actually promotes its own.
What Has to Change
The formula for his next step isn't mysterious. He's shown he can survive senior reserve football. Now he needs to produce in it, turning good moments in open games into goals and assists against organised defences. Versatility helps; being able to play on the right, centrally or closer to the striker gives a coach options. But versatility without output tends to make someone a squad player, not a starter.
Athletic's first team is a hard door to open. It does open, though, for academy players who show they're ready. If Pérez adds a sharper final product to the work rate that earned him 28 games, he'll be in the conversation. If not, the 2027 contract date will start to feel very close.
While you wait to see how his season unfolds, have your say on the players who already made it: vote for the best soccer players of all time on Icon Polls.
Short Answers
Has Adrián Pérez played for Athletic Club's first team?
His established record is with Bilbao Athletic, Basconia and Athletic's youth sides, including the UEFA Youth League. He's still pushing for a senior breakthrough.
What position does he play?
Mainly right winger or attacking midfielder, and he's comfortable arriving in the box from either role. He's right-footed.
How much is he paid?
His salary hasn't been disclosed. Icon Polls estimates his net worth at US$200,000 to US$500,000.
