Lisandro Martinez

Barcelona are reportedly interested in signing Argentine defender Lisandro Martinez from Ajax.

While he has been linked with a move away from Ajax in the past, there appears to be genuine interest from the Catalan club. Per a report by TuttoMercatoWeb, first contacts have been made between Barcelona and Ajax over the defender. Per the report, Lisandro would cost Barcelona between ?20-25 million.

https://mundoalbiceleste.com/2021/0...een-barcelona-and-ajax-over-lisandro-martinez


I've not watched him too much but he was always solid when I did so I understand why he could be considered a (relatively) cheap and interesting option for us. He's versatile and could cover both LB (until Balde is ready) and CB (to replace Umtiti and/or Lenglet), possibly also DM. Could also do well as a LCB in three at the back formation. And his total cost probably wouldn't be that much different than signing Alaba "for free" giving him and his agent a big sign-on fee and wages.

And well, no need to say we have a very good history signing players from Ajax.

Football manager legend

Better than de Ligt.

I like him more than Pau Torres as the LCB replacement for Lenglet.

I'm on the fence with this one. He could be a decent squad player but I want a definite starter or someone who will compete for a spot.

Let’s hope if we sign a “Martinez” this summer it’s this one and not the other.

We don't have money to bring a proven starting quality CB this summer imo. Unless we won't get Haaland and then Laporta will try to use that money (which we don't really have, lol) to get De Ligt but that's unlikely. And tbh I'm not sure De Ligt is who we should be going for anyway, especially not for a crazy price. Surely not at this time and probably never I'd pay close to or over 100m for a CB. Better getting someone like Kounde then who would probably be available for like half of his price.

But if you don't have a sure-fire starter then having youngsters competing for minutes is the next best thing imo. As long as he stays healthy I think Araujo has shown enough to play most of the games when available. We'll have to see how he'll fit into that 3 atb defense with Frenkie dropping back once he's fully recovered from the injury first though.

And then we'd have Oscar, Garcia and possibly Lisandro with Pique providing some experience to the youngsters. He shouldn't be a starter anymore though. Having 5 CBs is ok since Mingueza and possibly Lisandro could also provide depth at both FB/WB positions if needed.

I wouldn't try too desperately to sell him but if we'll get a decent offer for Lenglet we could re-invest that money in Lisandro if the club really thinks highly of him and Koeman would also give his blessing for his signing (I wouldn't want us to sign someone he wouldn't be totally on board with and then not use him, we just can't afford those kind of transfers now). We can also sell Firpo and hopefully find someone to take Umtiti on loan and cover at least part of his wages. So we'd basically get one player to replace three outgoing (and we'd still leave the doors open for Balde to get some minutes). Transfer fee is not that problematic as it's divided into the length of the contract (so for example if we'd pay 25-30m for Lisandro he'd only cost us 5-6m next year) and we'd also lower total wages.

Budget Alaba?

Haven't seen that much of him but would like a versatile backup. Seems short, how's he physically?

Agressive and good tackling. Great on the ball.

Played CDM many games.

Could be decent as one of the 3 CB's.

Joan said:

Budget Alaba?

Haven't seen that much of him but would like a versatile backup. Seems short, how's he physically?

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Haven’t seen much either. I saw that too, 178cm at CB?

Vilarrubi said:

Haven?t seen much either. I saw that too, 178cm at CB?

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Seems so. That's shorter than Kounde and people are suspect of him. Could still be decent in the air, but haven't seen much.

Imagine him and Garcia together

Joan said:

Seems so. That's shorter than Kounde and people are suspect of him. Could still be decent in the air, but haven't seen much.

Imagine him and Garcia together

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Yeah that’s an issue if both of them are that short.


Although he wins a few coins back for his nickname:

Martinez: “My nickname being the butcher? When I’m on the pitch, I forget the rest of the world and play only to win. But I don’t think this nickname suits me, I rely a lot on my technique as well. I would never deliberately injure a player.”

Same height as Puyol, 4 cms taller than Masche. We've had success with shorter CBs so his height is not a problem for me. And he actually looks solid in the air as well. Also quite aggressive, maybe overcommited sometimes (so a bit like Mingueza and if we get him they probably shouldn't play together, lol). Versatility is another positive. I think we should have shorter squad next season (to save on wages of fringe players we won't really use) so having a few players like Roberto (I'd still prefer to sell him if possible), Oscar, Lisandro and maybe Collado on the bench is not the worst plan. I'd like us to have strong 15-16 players who can start any game and then 3-4 players capable of covering multiple positions.

I'm actually starting to warming up on the idea of getting him if he'd be available for anywhere close to the reported fee 25m. Still need to "scout" him a bit more though.

Vilarrubi said:

Yeah that’s an issue if both of them are that short.


Although he wins a few coins back for his nickname:

Martinez: “My nickname being the butcher? When I’m on the pitch, I forget the rest of the world and play only to win. But I don’t think this nickname suits me, I rely a lot on my technique as well. I would never deliberately injure a player.”

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So he's not a choir boy? BBZ should like him even if he's not that tall.

He's a short Argentine CB/CDM. Destined for greatness. Sign him up