FC Barcelona are currently going through a congested run of games, and the team is naturally set to get fatigued and tired by playing so many games in such a short period of time.
As a result, Xavi announced before the match against Celta that he will be making changes to his starting lineup in the upcoming matches to rest key players.
This promise was kept by Xavi in the Celta Vigo match, and thus, rotations are also expected for the upcoming midweek tie against Mallorca.
Martinez likely to start against Mallorca
Several players have accumulated a high number of minutes already this season, and two of these players are Jules Kounde and Andreas Christensen. Kounde has played 630 minutes, and Christensen has played 485 minutes up to now, despite the latter also not being 100% fit for the first few weeks of the season.
Thus, SPORT reports that at least one of them can be rested against Mallorca, and one of the prime candidates to see game time is the newly signed defender, Inigo Martinez. Against Celta, Xavi picked Ronald Araujo despite him just returning from an injury, but his ability to perform in a three-man defense forced Xavi’s hand.
Defender yet to debut for Barcelona
Martinez is yet to start a game for Barcelona and has appeared only in two games for the Catalans, accumulating only fifteen minutes up to this point in the season. However, he needs minutes to get into his best physical condition after recovering from a plantar fasciitis problem.
The match against Mallorca seems to be a good opportunity for him to get minutes and get back into good physical shape. However, he is unlikely to be fit enough to last the entire ninety minutes, and Xavi will have to manage his minutes carefully to ensure he does not suffer a relapse, while other defenders also get the needed rest.
