Jorge Herrando: “This renewal is a challenge because I want to be an important player at Osasuna”

Defender Jorge Herrando addressed the media after it was announced that the Campanas native and Club Atlético Osasuna have extended their relationship through 2030. During the press conference, the Navarrese center back expressed his gratitude to sporting director Braulio Vázquez, assistant sporting director Cata Prieto and the board of directors for the renewal.

“It’s been many years since they came in, and we’ve been on this path together. I want to thank them for the way they’ve treated me throughout all this time,” he said. Herrando also thanked his family, his partner and everyone who has supported him along the way.

Regarding the extension, the defender said: “It gives you that sense of security, knowing you have a few years guaranteed, but it’s also a challenge because I’m not satisfied with just renewing for four years and that’s it. I want to be an important player at Osasuna, and that’s where my ambition and my work are focused.”

The academy product joined Tajonar as a teenager in the 2015–16 season. Since then, he has progressed through the club’s structure until establishing himself in the first team.

“I’ve gone through each stage step by step. Now I’m at the stage of settling into the first team. I think the stages ahead of me — the ones I’d like to achieve — are becoming a regular starter, being an important player for the team and in the locker room, and hopefully one day becoming a captain of Osasuna. That would complete the whole dream,” he said when asked about his career path and what remains to be accomplished at his lifelong club.

He was also asked about accumulating seasons in the first-team locker room and gaining authority within it. “That comes with time, but yes — the more years you spend there, the more authority you gain. I’ve had great examples of strong locker-room leaders, and I’ve always observed what each one did, the things I liked. Hopefully one day I can be like one of them,” he said.

Braulio Vázquez: “This is a strategic renewal”

Sporting director Braulio Vázquez accompanied Herrando at the press conference and presented the extension.

“Today we’re here for the renewal of Jorge Herrando as our player through 2030, and I hope it will be for many more years,” Vázquez said. “It’s a strategic renewal, an important one for the club because, in addition to being a homegrown player, he is at the required level and shows it day by day. The center-back position is very specific, and I don’t think we’ve yet seen the best version of Jorge.”

“I’m convinced that from the age of 26 or 27 — as happened with David García — it’s a position where you improve greatly with experience, because defensive experiences are very different from those in other positions on the field,” he added.

Beyond Herrando’s sporting level and development, Vázquez highlighted his identification with the club. “What stands out most to me about Jorge is his Osasuna identity. I’ll always remember seeing him at San Mamés, before he was in the first team, with his sandwich and his Osasuna shirt. That image stuck with me. He enjoyed it and suffered like any other fan.”

“He’s gone through a formative process in which he’s had the humility to let himself be guided by the coaches, even when that meant, for example, dropping back to the youth team to regain confidence before moving up again. He listened a lot in those moments, and I think that collectively we’ve achieved the fact that he’s now a first-team center back. I hope he stays with us for many, many years.”