Lieke Martens leaves FC Barcelona. As La Vanguardia has learned, the Dutch soccer player is currently in Paris to undergo a medical check-up and sign her new contract with Paris Saint-Germain. Despite the fact that there had been much speculation about her continuity at the Barça club, with which her contract ends on June 30, Martens has decided to put an end to her stage at the Catalan club.
In the last few hours, the rumors that Le Parisien had already advanced in mid-May in which they placed Martens in the French club had gained strength, although other information indicated that there were still possibilities that the striker would continue in Barcelona, where he is very happy . There did not seem to be any major disagreements regarding contractual issues, the problem would be personal. After several years apart, Martens would have expressed his desire to live near her fiancé, fellow footballer Benjamin van Leer. As the journalist Marta Carreras explained, Barça itself would be trying to find a new destination for the now Sparta Rotterdam goalkeeper and Piqué's Andorra sounded strong. However, as La Vanguardia has learned, Lieke Martens and PSG have been talking for months and would have closed a verbal agreement in February. An agreement that neither Barcelona nor their teammates knew anything about.
Martens' tears on Sunday in Alcorcón, celebrating the Copa de la Reina, went viral heralding the goodbye of the 29-year-old soccer player who was the first big star to land in Barcelona. The Dutchwoman arrived at the Barça club in 2017 after proclaiming herself champion of the European Championship with the Netherlands. A competition that turned her from a discreet player to a world star recognized with awards from UEFA and FIFA.
It was one of the greatest successes of the sports management of Barcelona, who signed his incorporation just before the footballer stood out in the European Championship in the Netherlands. Today, Martens is one of the highest paid players in Europe, the image of several firms and with a strong media presence. The Dutchwoman, with 1.3 million followers on Instagram, is only surpassed by Alexia and even has more followers than the PSG women's team profile itself, with a million followers.
Lieke Martens, with a very discreet profile, will change a dressing room in which she feels very comfortable for another dotted with controversy: the attack on Hamraoui, which is still unresolved, the fights between the former Barça player and some of her teammates, the dismissal of the coach Didier Ollé-Nicolle while being investigated for "inappropriate facts and comments"... The arrival of the Dutchwoman, yes, could serve the French team to finish convincing their star, striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto, to stay in the PSG.
