The imminent departure of Inigo Martinez definitely complicates things for Barcelona. For La Blaugrana, he was a key player at the back, and his exit now leaves a big void in the backline. Unfortunately, a new replacement might not be coming.
As highlighted by Mundo Deportivo, the club never intended to sign a new player regardless of a possible centre-back exit. This was essentially confirmed by Deco himself previously when the club director stated that a centre-back was expected to leave this summer.
Barcelona remain true to Deco’s original plan
In reality, the fact of the matter is that the club wanted a centre-back to leave this summer. They reportedly believed that there were too many players in that position, and one needed to go in order for the club to stick with the other four.
Deco also previously confirmed that Ronald Araujo would not be leaving this summer, so that essentially left three other candidates. Andreas Christensen, Inigo Martinez, and Eric Garcia were the players that the club was left to choose from.
Eric Garcia impressed with his versatility and proved his worth as a more than decent back for Jules Kounde at right-back. That left Andreas Christensen and Inigo Martinez as the two candidates, and despite reports linking the Danish player to a potential exit, it seems that Martinez will ultimately be the player to leave.
Fortunately, the club could potentially count on five players to play as centre-backs next season. Araujo, Cubarsi, Christensen, and Garcia are already there, but Gerard Martin has showcased his ability to play in that position as well recently and is now seen as a versatile asset, too.
Still, the abrupt nature of this potential departure concerning Inigo Martinez is bad news for the coaching staff. Irrespective of there being a gentleman’s agreement, Barcelona should have dealt with this in a more regulated manner.
