The Western media "World Sports News" reported that Gerald Martin is ready to play as a central defender if Flick needs it.
Five days before Inigo Martinez announced his departure from the team, Gerald Martin served as a central defender in a friendly match against Daegu FC, partnering with Araujo. Inigo Martinez was not given playing time at that time, although his intention to leave the team has not been made public. Gerald Martin spent three weeks in a cast for a hand injury in the summer, which caused some difficulties in his pre-season preparations, but he was back to form in the first training session of the season.
In the friendly match, Flick tried to use Gerald Martin as a central defender. Gerald Martin was once considered a potential candidate for the center back position. Now, with three uncertainties in the defense, the possibility of reviving this scheme has greatly increased.
Against Celta Vigo this weekend, only Araujo can play at his best. Araujo has started in the last two games, against Elche and Club Brugge. Eric Garcia, on the other hand, wore a mask during training on Friday after suffering a broken nose in the Champions League. As for Kubasi, he missed several days of training due to injury a week ago and has not yet fully returned to his starting position. Christensen has agreed with Flick not to travel to Bruges, but is expected to return on Sunday. He trained with the team on Friday and has not played since the game against Girona.
In this case, Flick called up youth training player Mbacke to participate in training before the game against Elche, but he was not ultimately included in the game roster. Gerald Martin has not yet played as a central defender in official games, but his team stated that he is ready if Flick needs it.
In his first season after joining Barcelona, Gerald Martin mainly served as a left back in the B team, but rarely moved forward to participate in the offense. In the B team, he accumulated experience as a left central defender in a three-centre-back system. What really attracted Flick's attention was Gerald Martin's ability to pass the ball in the attacking third.
So far this season, Herard Martin has accumulated 563 minutes of playing time, but all of them are on the wing. At the beginning of the season, reserve full-back Torrenz was promoted to the first team, which also hinted at the possibility that Flick might place Gerald Martin in the full-back position. He has a few more chances for the upcoming weekend games. His versatility has earned him more opportunities.
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