Lisandro Martínez does in an interview with Het Parool open a book about his childhood. The 23-year-old defender says that a difficult period began for him when his parents separated at the age of twelve. “I had a hard time with that. Was sad and was looking for a way out. I spent a lot of time outside with friends, doing things that are unacceptable, ”says Martínez.
“Not a criminal, but I did push the boundaries. Drinking, fights ”, says the Argentinian defender. His life changed when he met his girlfriend Muriel at the age of fourteen, with whom he is currently still together. “She showed me things that I didn’t see before. I had to grow up. She helped me with that, with my parents and grandfather and grandmother. ” At the same time, Martínez ended up in the youth academy of Newell’s Old Boys, where he was in a boarding school.
“The first months were especially tough, but Muriel has always stimulated me to keep fighting for my dream. That black period in my adolescence, the age at which you search for yourself, has shaped me, made me the football player and the person that I am ”, says Martínez. He did not break through at Newell’s Old Boys and made the switch to Defensa y Justicia, where he ended up in the spotlight at Ajax.
“I still remember exactly when Ajax came to me. That was the great year in the Champions League, around the matches against Juventus. Scout Henk Veldmate was in Argentina and wanted to get to know me better. We spoke to each other, first about personal matters and then about football. Then I didn’t want to know anything about other clubs. I wanted to go to Ajax ”, Martínez reminds me. For the time being, he has played 78 official matches for Ajax since his arrival.