Athletic Club attentive to the situation of veteran Barcelona defender – report

As the summer transfer window looms large, Barcelona have some major decisions to make with regard to their squad for the next season.

There will be one or two major exits while some fringe players, like Oriol Romeu and Marcos Alonso, could also leave.

Another veteran player whose future has been cast into some doubt is Inigo Martinez.

The veteran defender signed as a free agent last summer after his contract at Athletic Club expired. Even though he penned a two-year deal, Barcelona registered him for only one year with La Liga due to FFP issues.

As such, Martinez will need to be registered freshly in the summer, as if a new signing. And there are reports suggesting that it could pose an issue leading to a potential exit for the Spaniard.

Athletic Club would be interested

Now, Mundo Deportivo states that Athletic Club are attentive to the situation of Inigo Martinez heading into the summer transfer window.

Indeed, in case Martinez’s continuity at Barcelona is under threat, Los Leones would be open to the idea of bringing him back to San Mames.

Inigo Martinez signed for Barcelona in 2023. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)

However, it must be noted that Barça manager Xavi Hernandez, who will remain at the helm for another season, wants the veteran defender to stay.

Martinez’s experience and knowledge are seen as valuable commodities within the team and even though Pau Cubarsi has crept ahead of him in the pecking order, the coach is in favour of retaining him.

Since joining Barcelona last summer, Martinez has played only 20 times in all competitions, featuring for a total of 1215 minutes.

The centre-back, who turns 33 years old in a couple of weeks, has had to battle injury problems but has largely given a good account of himself. So, it remains to be seen how things evolve as far as his future is concerned.