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According to information from the newspaper 'Sport', Barcelona has made a special request to Íñigo Martínez in order to have him in their ranks. The Catalan team has asked Athletic not to renew his contract, which expires next year. This idea would leave him as a free player in order to save on the transfer fee. The 'lion' team insists on extending his contract, and a key meeting on this matter will take place this Wednesday.
They will tell him that they want him to extend his contract with the red and white team, but if he wants to wear the blue and garnet jersey in the 23-24 season, he will have to respond with a negative. This will determine whether Joan Laporta can make a personal offer for him, although there is always the option of reaching an agreement with his current owners as he has done with Sevilla for Koundé or with Bayern for Lewandowski.
The 'culés' are not in a hurry in this regard for logical reasons, since they have already filled all positions in this transfer market and, in addition, they have invested a large amount of money in signings, so buying Martínez would be an additional expense.
Xavi Hernández counts on the aforementioned Koundé and Araujo to build the center of his defense, so Ernesto Valverde's protege is not a market target that needs to be urgently acquired. It is, rather, an option that the Catalan club is considering.
Íñigo Martínez has a lot of experience in the Spanish League, so he would not need adaptation time if he were signed by Barcelona. He would have to adapt to his coach's know-how, although his playing style is one that he already knows from his performances with the Spanish national team.
If he were to join the Barcelona team, he would also have to compete for a starting spot or be one of the regular substitutes for Xavi Hernández, who will have 'problems' this season when it comes to assembling a squad and leaving key players on the bench.
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