Following weeks of speculation at FC Barcelona regarding when the official announcement of new signings and arrivals will start to pile up, it appears now it is time for the Catalan club to finally present their newest arrivals to the footballing world through their own lens.
Reportedly having been their very first agreement for the summer, after having pursued his signing on various occasions even before this summer, Barcelona have made official the signing of a player who previously donned the red and white colors of Athletic Bilbao.
Arriving on a free transfer, FC Barcelona have made official the signing of 32-year-old Spanish central defender Inigo Martinez, who will be set to represent the Blaugrana colors for the next two years until 2025.
The Spaniard has previously defended the colors of Athletic Bilbao since 2018 and prior to that represented the blue and whites of Real Sociedad, having come up from their B team, having spent a total of 9 years with the Txuri-Urdin.
A player of unmistaken quality and proven experience in the top division of Spanish football for years now, Barcelona have known the Spaniard quite well as an annoying opponent to deal with in the past but now they welcome him as one of their own as he is set to defend the Barcelona crest for the first time in his career.
With the addition of Inigo Martinez now confirmed, Barcelona possess the services of Uruguay’s Ronald Araujo, Denmark’s Andreas Christensen, Frenchman Jules Kounde, and Spaniards Marcos Alonso and Eric Garcia alongside the new arrival as their options in the center-back positions for the upcoming 2023/2024 season.
It remains to be seen just who ends up taking the hit courtesy of this new arrival, as even though players such as Clement Lenglet and Samuel Umtiti are set to depart soon, recent reports suggest that potentially even Eric Garcia could be on his way out.
It is unsure whether it may be as a loan move or permanent transfer, but there is definitely going to be a lack of game time for several players with the acquisitions of these new signings, and Barcelona are definitely not in a financially stable enough state to facilitate the salaries of players they do not even deem important or consider them in their plans for the future.
