Leganes reveal feelings about Barcelona for signing Martin Braithwaite
Leganes are left in a no-win situation as Barcelona complete the signing of Martin Braithwaite.
Barcelona were given a special exemption by LaLiga to sign a replacement for the injured Ousmane Dembélé and chose to sign Martin Braithwaite from Leganes.
Unfortunately it leaves Leganes in a difficult situation with very little recourse. Leganes director general Martin Ortega called the signing unfair but made it clear that they don’t hold anything against the Catalans.
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According to Sport, Ortega said,
"“We harbour no ill will towards Barça. They used the current rule and that’s all there is to say. The rule isn’t fair because it punishes us.”"
Martin Ortega is right. The rule is unfair to Leganes. They now find themselves down a player.
A player who this season has scored six goals and provided two assists. Leganes have scored only 18 goals which shows how important Braithwaite has been for them.
Furthermore, unlike Barcelona, they are not allowed to go out and find a replacement. For a team in the midst of battling relegation, the damage is two-fold.
Leganes are two points from safety and were counting on Braithwaite for their survival.
Ortega did thank Braithwaite for his professionalism and training despite knowing that if he got injured, then the opportunity to join Barcelona would be gone.
While it provides little solace now, Sport are also reporting that LaLiga are looking to change the rule. Should the rule change, if another club like Leganes find themselves in the same situation, they would also be allowed to sign a replacement.
Ortega is not giving up without a fight. Leganes are in discussions hoping to sign someone. But as it stands, their only recourse is signing a free agent.
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But like Ortega said, it’s the system that is flawed and Barcelona took advantage of it. Still, it’s yet another example of the team with resourced pretty much doing whatever they want while a “smaller” team pays the price.