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Despite rumors of an imminent transfer, the Spaniard still managed to guide his current club to more titles.
Hansi Flick thought it appropriate that Javi Martínez was Bayern Munich’s unlikely Super Cup hero just one day after it was reported that he would rejoin Athletic Bilbao.
Martinez came off the bench in Thursday’s Super Cup overtime against Sevilla in Budapest and five minutes later led the winner in a 2-1 win that earned the team that won the Flick treble even more trophies.
It was Martínez’s first goal since April 2019 and may be the last of his eight-year career with Bayern, as rumors persist of a return to Athletic de La Liga.
The 32-year-old is in the final year of his contract with Bayern, and reports suggest that Bundesliga and Champions League holders want a transfer fee for the midfielder despite Athletic’s desire to bring him in from return to Spain in a free transfer.
“Javi scored the goal and won us the game. Sometimes football writes these stories, this one is beautiful,” said head coach Flick. Heaven.
“On Wednesday there were reports that he was in Bilbao, but tonight he scored the winning goal.”
Martinez also came off the bench to score a goal in extra time in Bayern’s previous Super Cup win seven years earlier, when they beat Chelsea on penalties.
“Congratulations to the team and to Javi Martínez, our Mr. Super Cup”, said Muller UEFA.com.
“We fight hard and show as a team that we have that winning mentality, even when we are not at our best.”
This time, Bayern triumphed in the 120th minute, falling behind Lucas Ocampos’s penalty before Leon Goretzka leveled before half-time.
It may not have been as complete as their 8-0 season-opener win over Schalke in the Bundesliga last week, but Flick was pleased with his team’s staying power.
“It took us the first 15 minutes to get into the game,” Flick said.
“It was great for me to see the team try to move forward with their mentality and succeed. In the end, my players broke through the pain barrier to win.”
