Barcelona could sacrifice defender following a verbal agreement with La Liga ace

Barcelona seem to be getting closer and closer to the capture of Athletic Club defender Inigo Martinez on a free transfer in the summer. The 31-year-old, Financial Fair Play permitted, seems all set to become a Blaugrana before next season.

Indeed, according to Javi Miguel of AS, there is a verbal agreement in place between Barcelona and Inigo Martinez over a transfer at the end of the season.

However, as per the report, such a deal could end up cutting short Eric Garcia’s time at Barcelona.

It is no secret that the Catalans need to make cuts to their wage budget and generate revenue at the same time, which means some players will be offloaded in the summer.

And Javi Miguel is reporting that in the defensive department, Garcia could be the player who will be sacrificed, especially if Martinez arrives without any problems.

Eric Garcia returned to Barcelona in 2021, four years after leaving the club’s academy for Manchester City. However, the 22-year-old has been unable to carve out a place for himself in the team.

There have been glimpses of potential every now and then, but in between those moments, there have been quite a few erroneous displays. That, coupled with quality competition in the squad, has seen the Spanish international become an afterthought at Camp Nou.

Indeed, as things stand, Garcia is behind Ronald Araujo, Andreas Christensen, Jules Kounde and even Marcos Alonso in the pecking order under manager Xavi Hernandez. Should Martinez arrive, things could get worse for the ex-Man City ace.

So, Barcelona could look to cash in on Garcia, even though he still has over three years left on his contract.

The 22-year-old himself is at a juncture when he needs to play more regularly than he is currently and will have to decide whether he is happy to warm the benches in Barcelona or if he wants to go to a different team where he can get more minutes.