Barcelona not ruling out signing a new defender in the wake of veteran’s imminent departure

Barcelona fans have been rocked by the sudden news of Inigo Martinez’s departure, with the veteran defender all set to move to Saudi Arabia.

This comes on the back of an excellent season that saw Martinez become a vital cog in Hansi Flick’s defensive scheme.

However, it appears Martinez is ready to take the final step in his career by moving to Al Nassr on a free transfer. Fabrizio Romano has already given his ‘here we go’ for the transfer.

Will Barcelona sign a new defender?

According to Achraf Ben Ayad, Barcelona have not ruled out signing a new defender in the wake of Martinez’s imminent departure.

The Spaniard, after all, was a crucial part of Flick’s defensive scheme that relied heavily on a high line of press.

But with him gone, Barcelona will have to rely on Ronald Araujo, who is often prone to making errors and Eric Garcia, who is more of a utility player than a fully-fledged starter.

Will Barcelona sign a replacement for Inigo Martinez? (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Keeping that in mind, the Blaugrana are open to signing a new player in the transfer market so long as he meets the club’s criteria.

One would assume one of the club’s criteria will be cost-effectiveness, as Barcelona are unlikely to go after a big-money option right now.

However, the internal message from the club is that the team should rely on in-house options available, which include the likes of Araujo, Garcia and even Andreas Christensen.

The Dane is likely to stay following Martinez’s imminent exit, as Deco had promised that only one Barcelona defender would leave the club this summer.

Martinez, for his part, will leave Barcelona as one of the team’s performing defenders during his short spell in Catalonia.