FC 24 Path to Glory Lisandro Martinez Player Review - Cop or Flop

It sure has been quite a weekend of international football. And a bunch of great new players dropping in Ultimate Team too. Today we have a player that scored a goal for their nation a couple days ago and that man is Lisandro Martinez.

That’s right a Martinez SBC has dropped into FC24 today. Now i’ll admit it’s feeling a bit strange to consider that this card that has been released today, has already received the upgrades of this Path to Glory promo. So with that in mind, if Argentina win the Copa America, this card would get a +2 overall (Or a 1+ with a 5*/5* boost).

You can check out the card here!

This is a first special card for Martinez in FC24 so the upgrade here is obviously huge. A +10 boost from his base card with a huge boost going to Pace as well as some nice boosts to the rest to make this card really well rounded. All 4 Playstyle+s are additions also so a really nice upgrade to this card. My only concern is a short CB coming in to replace those usual brute players that we are used to.

Martinez joins Saliba in the backline around a nice Euro/Copa themed squad. At this stage Chemstyles are starting to feel less and less important but for this one I went for the Anchor to finish off the Pace/Defending/Physical stats.

Here are the following segments to unlock the Path to Glory Martinez SBC:

Argentina

# of players from Argentina: Min 1

Squad Rating: Min 85

# of players in squad: 11

Premier League

# of players from Premier League: Min 1

Squad Rating: Min 87

# of players in squad: 11

Really refreshing to have an SBC come out without a massive amount of segments and requirements. Most importantly, no need for a TOTS/TOTW in this SBC which is a huge bonus for me. To complete this SBC is coming in at a small fee of 90k. Feeling pretty good about this one!

How did he perform in-game?

+ Pace on this card was really nice. He was so quick to chase down the opposition and snap towards the ball.

+ Dribbling and general movement was really impressive. He felt a lot more grounded and made great snappy movements on and toward the ball.

+ Interceptions, due to the Intercept+ was of course really good. He constantly blocked off through balls that could have been a real threat on-goal.

+ Defensive positioning was also pretty good as he often had the foresight to get in the right place to put a stop to the opposition's play.

+ Passing was also nice, whether it be short passes or sending it upfield. He did a great job at finding his man.

- Unfortunately height is an issue here and despite having the Aerial playstyle, he was nearly always beaten in the air which led to conceding goals.

Lisandro Martinez - Cop or Flop?

First impressions for me, I was concerned about the height coming into this but felt really good about the price range. Is this SBC worth it? At 90k of course this one's worth the punt. How does he perform in-game though? For me, I have been left sort of feeling that this card would be more suited as a wing-back than he would a centre back. Which is disappointing because I'm not a fan of building a squad knowing I need to move things around to get it right. He was great defensively but I just feel you need bulky players in the middle that you can’t get over or around. 

He was really great at making defensive tackles, quick movements and swift passes. But he really let the side down in aerial battles, which was to be expected. That’s why I feel this card might work really well if moved out wide or even in a 3 at the back formation alongside the likes of Saliba, Blanc, VVD and all those big defenders. But this was a nice cheap SBC that I think is worth the pickup or at the very least, something to put your duplicate fodder in. Because an 85 & 87 squad is nice and easy to complete with plenty of time to get it done. 

Verdict = COP