Barcelona veteran emerges as alternative for Real Madrid defender by Saudi giants

With the summer transfer window on the horizon, clubs from Saudi Arabia are once again aiming big as they look to boost their footballing profile.

A number of Barcelona players are on the radars of clubs in the Saudi Pro League heading into the summer, with names like Jules Kounde, Robert Lewandowski, Clement Lenglet, and Raphinha among the names being linked.

Inigo Martinez now on Al-Ittihad’s radars

Now, MARCA reports that Barcelona veteran defender Inigo Martinez has emerged as a possible option for Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Ittihad.

The Middle Eastern outfit have Real Madrid captain Nacho Fernandez as their priority transfer target to reinforce the defensive unit.

A move for the Spanish international appeared to be advanced as well, although there have been some delays in recent days.

As such, in case Nacho’s transfer falls through, Al-Ittihad have identified Barcelona’s Inigo Martinez as an alternative option for the Real Madrid captain.

Martinez’s situation at Barcelona

Martinez joined Barcelona as a free agent last summer after running down his contract at Athletic Club, but his future at the club is far from certain.

Even though the Spaniard signed a two-year contract, he was registered with La Liga for only one year due to Financial Fair Play reasons.

As such, the Catalans will have to register Martinez from scratch again this summer, which could be an issue as there are other priorities for the club.

It could pave the way for the veteran centre-back to leave the Blaugrana and Al-Ittihad could be an option, although they only want him if they miss out on Nacho.