An up-and-coming member of the defensive ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona has beaten fellow starlet Mikayil Faye to a place in the plans of new Blaugrana head coach Hansi Flick.
That’s according to Diario Sport, who point towards Gerard Martín as the player in question.
Barca’s fans were afforded a first glimpse at stopper Martín in action in a competitive setting late last night.
This came after the 22-year-old was introduced off the bench, en route to the Blaugrana’s La Liga opening day victory over Valencia.
This was considered as a clear show of faith on the part of the aforementioned Hansi Flick, who is widely reported to have identified Martín as the first-choice backup to Alejandro Balde at left-back in his squad.
Not only that, but it also reiterated the absence of fellow stopper Mikayil Faye from the plans of Barca’s new headmaster.
As per a report from Diario Sport:
‘Faye has not convinced Hansi Flick in the pre-season and the German has given the go-ahead for his sale. One option was for him to move from centre-back to left-back, but Gerard Martin has beaten him in this position.’
Senegalese international Faye, in turn, is understood to be closing on a move to France, with Stade Rennais.
Conor Laird | GSFN
