How Hansi Flick & Barcelona teammate were the first to learn of Iñigo Martínez’s decision to leave | OneFootball

A fresh insight into the series of events which ultimately culminated in Iñigo Martínez departing La Liga champions Barcelona this past weekend has been forthcoming online.

The name of defender Iñigo of course dominated the headlines in Catalunya’s capital late last week.

As much came after word surfaced that, somewhat out of the blue, the 34-year-old was on the verge of bringing a close to the Barcelona chapter of his career.

In the face of a big-money offer from Saudi Arabia, Iñigo made the call to move on for one final pay day.

Barcelona, for their part, did not stand in the way of the stopper’s exit, opening the door for as much courtesy of a contract termination.

His decision, though, nevertheless came as something of a surprise, with Iñigo having played a leading role in Hansi Flick’s XI last season.

And as alluded to above, on Tuesday, a fresh insight into the situation has been forthcoming.

The info comes courtesy of Diario Sport, citing journalist Xavi Hernández Navarro of Spanish outlet ARA, who today revealed the following:

“Iñigo handled the matter in absolute silence, from the first call when the Barça expedition was still in Japan until he closed the conditions with the millionaire Saudi club. While his colleagues slept at night, he negotiated with the help of a trusted representative, José Tudela. None of the members of the expedition knew anything until the plane back to Barcelona. The first to find out about the bombshell were Dani Olmo and Hansi Flick. They received the news mid-flight. Out loud.”

Conor Laird – GSFN