5 - Iñigo Martínez

[DonAndres]

You dont pay 30m for a player as you dont think there are alternatives.

He would be the fourth best center half in the squad.



I dont even think he was the best defender at Sociedad last season, maybe even third.

Pique is dismal these days both aerially and on the ground, Puyol is far from world class anymore and frankly will spend more and more time recovering from injuries rather than playing, Mascherano at CB simply does not work in big games and his positioning has cost us many times before in the past. Martinez would pair with Pique perfectly, gives us more aerial ability in the squad, is a long term option, and has less than 1/4 of the flaws the other defenders in our squad have.

The only debatable thing about his performance at Sociedad is that Carlos Martinez was better than him. And considering Carlos was the best RB in la liga this season it's not really something you can say to make Inigo seem any worse.

 

[Superfly]

You have not stated why he is good enough for Barcelona.

You have not stated any alternatives better than him.

 

[XaviMessiGirl]

You have not stated why he is good enough for Barcelona.

No one has asked me to & DonAndres has covered it perfectly anyway. I (along with others) asked you a question & you've avoided it. We want to know who you think, with the exception of maybe Thiago Silva, would be a better choice.

 

[JamDav1982]

His defending has been way better than any of our defenders, based on this season. He has the physical presence and aerial dominance which we really lack. Which options do you see as a better fit?

Aerial dominance? Where has this aerial dominant idea come from?

He is 93 on the list of aerial duals won in La Liga - behind the vast majority of defenders in the league.

In terms of tackles, interceptions again he is nowhere near one of the top players in the league.

Can you remember how utterly terrible he was in the first half of that Olympics against Japan last year? That was in a defence that doesnt sit deep and play on the counter.

 

[DonAndres]

Aerial dominance? Where has this aerial dominant idea come from?

He is 93 on the list of aerial duals won in La Liga - behind the vast majority of defenders in the league.

In terms of tackles, interceptions again he is nowhere near one of the top players in the league.

Can you remember how utterly terrible he was in the first half of that Olympics against Japan last year? That was in a defence that doesnt sit deep and play on the counter.

Can you remember how bad Montoya was during the Olympics as well? Or Botia, or Dominguez, or even Alba? De Gea was the only good performer at the Olympics along with possibly Mata. Don't even try to pin their failures on Martinez when it was obviously the fault of Luis Milla for being such a crap manager.

 

[JamDav1982]

Can you remember how bad Montoya was during the Olympics as well? Or Botia, or Dominguez, or even Alba? De Gea was the only good performer at the Olympics along with possibly Mata. Don't even try to pin their failures on Martinez when it was obviously the fault of Luis Milla for being such a crap manager.

But you still think he is dominant in the air?

 

[darthvader7888]

I too don't believe he is worth 30m. But if there was a choice between David Luiz for 25m and Iñigo Martínez @ 30m, i'd choose Iñigo, all day long.

This. Hell, I'd rather get him for 30m than Mathieu or Vermaelen for free. I'd rather get Marquinhos than Martinez though. Or better yet, a world class CB like Silva or Kompany (though both seem unlikely) rather than a potential one like Martinez or Marquinhos. However, I'd much rather get Martinez or Marquinhos than a lot of the other CBs we've been linked with.

 

[JamDav1982]

This. Hell, I'd rather get him for 30m than Mathieu or Vermaelen for free. I'd rather get Marquinhos than Martinez though. Or better yet, Silva (though it seems pretty unlikely).

Thank god Barcelona chiefs dont seem to agree.

 

[darthvader7888]

Thank god Barcelona chiefs dont seem to agree.

So you'd rather get Mathieu or Vermaelen?

 

[DonAndres]

But you still think he is dominant in the air?

He's no Hummels or Kompany in the air but definitely way above average. Does it really matter whether he is a world class header if he adds a huge amount of defensive security to our back line and for a decent price? He'd fit right in because of nationality and can be a real leader figure at the club in the future.

 

[Superfly]

So you'd rather get Mathieu or Vermaelen?

Who knows who he wants, he still hasn't answered who he thinks is a better option

 

[JamDav1982]

Who knows who he wants, he still hasn't answered who he thinks is a better option

Marquinhos, Hummels, Luiz I would all take over him without a doubt.

I would also rather pay 5m for Mathieu than 30m for him.

He's no Hummels or Kompany in the air but definitely way above average. Does it really matter whether he is a world class header if he adds a huge amount of defensive security to our back line and for a decent price? He'd fit right in because of nationality and can be a real leader figure at the club in the future.

Above average?

Yet the actual stats suggest he is actually quite a bit below average.

 

[XaviMessiGirl]

I agree I would rather have Marquinhos too but Hummels is too similar to Pique (slow) & I have no idea how someone could think Luiz is Barca standard but Martinez isn't.

 

[JamDav1982]

I agree I would rather have Marquinhos too but Hummels is too similar to Pique (slow) & I have no idea how someone could think Luiz is Barca standard but Martinez isn't.

I dont want Luiz at Barcelona but I think he has more of the attributes needed than Martinez.

 

[DonAK]

I dont want Luiz at Barcelona but I think he has more of the attributes needed than Martinez.

You want a medicore CB who got shifted to DM instead of a good CB who has the potential to become among the best in the world?