After a number of their players went down with serious injuries early in 2019, Barcelona was granted special permission by La Liga to acquire a player outside the transfer window. Barca used this emergency transfer on Danish forward Martin Braithwaite, for whom the move turned out to be a life-changing event.
Braithwaite recently had a chat with Goal.com and discussed his surprising transfer to Camp Nou and the impact it had on him. “I felt really proud and patted myself on the back,” said Braithwaite. “I said to myself that the hard work was paying off, and it gave me even more motivation to push the limits on what I can do in my career.”
According to Braithwaite, a “lot of things” changed now that he plays for one of the biggest clubs in the world. “A lot of things changed because now I am in the biggest club in the world so people look at you differently and recognize you more because my face is now more familiar. Beyond football, it changed a little bit but, in the end, football is still football,” he added.
Over the course of his career, Martin Braithwaite built a reputation of being a solid striker who was considered a good option for middle-tier clubs. Braithwaite previously played in native Denmark, France, and England before joining Leganes in 2018. He scored eight goals in 24 games with Leganes this season, prompting Barca to be interested in him.
Since joining Barcelona, Braithwaite made three appearances but is yet to score a goal. However, he will have enough time to get going as he has a four-year contract with the Catalan giant.
