![Nico Williams rejoices with his brother Inaki (r) after scoring Athletic Bilbao's second goal. (EPA PHOTO) Nico Williams rejoices with his brother Inaki (r) after scoring Athletic Bilbao's second goal. (EPA PHOTO)](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-feed-data/1dec0d78-05f9-4ca3-b4f2-7c8ed905bfad.jpg/r0_0_800_600_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Brothers Inaki and Nico Williams have taken Athletic Bilbao to their third Copa del Rey final in the last five years with the Basque team securing a 3-0 semi-final win over Atletico Madrid.
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Thursday's victory sealed a resounding 4-0 aggregate victory.
There was fan trouble ahead of the clash at San Mames Stadium, with Atletico saying one of its supporters was hospitalised with serious injuries after an altercation with Athletic fans at a nearby bar.
Also, the start of the second half was delayed for more than 15 minutes as medics attended to an Athletic supporter in the stands.
The fan reportedly had a cardiac arrest and was taken out on a stretcher. Initial reports by Spanish media said his condition was not serious.
Athletic are the second most successful club in the Copa with 23 titles, eight less than Barcelona. They last won the competition in 1984, but were runners-up in 2019-20 and in 2021-21, losing to Sociedad and then Barcelona.
The team coached by Ernesto Valverde eliminated Barcelona in the quarter-finals this season to reach the last four for the fifth straight time.
Athletic punished the visitors with clinical counter-attacks, starting when Inaki Williams struck in the 13th minute with a superb volley from his brother's cross.
Inaki returned the favour to his younger sibling in the 42nd minute, setting up Nico for a simple close-range finish.
"Nico and I have fought hard to be able to enjoy things like this together," Inaki said. "It's a night to enjoy and to be proud."
They continued to dominate and Gorka Guruzeta wrapped up the win for the Basque side from a rebound in the 61st minute.
Athletic's 1-0 win at the Metropolitano in the first leg ended Atletico's 28-match unbeaten streak at home across all competitions.
Athletic will face Mallorca, who beat Real Sociedad 5-4 on penalties in the semis on Wednesday, in the final in Seville on April 6.
with AP
Australian Associated Press