Martin Montoya moves from Brighton to Real Betis
It is adios to Martin Montoya as the Spanish defender departs Brighton & Hove Albion to return to his homeland with La Liga side Real Betis.
Reports suggest that there is little-to-no-fee involved. Brighton have instead allowed Montoya to leave for a nominal amount, a reward for the underrated job he did in helping the club transition between one retiring legend in Bruno and a young player who has all the tools to make it to the very top in Tariq Lamptey.
Montoya was signed in the final throes of the 2018 summer transfer window by Chris Hughton. Ezeuqiel Schelotto had proven far too unpredictable to succeed Bruno in the 2017-18 season and so Montoya was brought in for £6 million from Valencia to ease the burden on Brighton’s veteran captain.
The Albion saw off competition from Fulham for his signature and in the process, Montoya became only the second Champions League winner to sign for Brighton after Tomasz Kuszczak.
He ended up playing 29 times in his first campaign at the Amex, usurping Bruno as first choice right back. Montoya’s form meant that Bruno was able to retire knowing that the right back position was in safe hands.
Montoya began the 2019-20 season as one of Graham Potter’s most trusted players, thriving in both the 3-4-3 which the new Albion boss used in the opening two months of the campaign and then in the 4-2-2-2 that followed.
Both formations gave Montoya the licence to roam forward which he seemed to thoroughly enjoy, as you would expect a player forged in the academy of Barcelona and who was understudy to Dani Alves to do.
Montoya missed just six of Brighton’s first 29 Premier League games. The signing of Lamptey from Chelsea for £4 million in January did not initially impact on Montoya but once the teenager began putting in a string of superlative performances post-lockdown, Montoya’s days as a regular look numbered.
He started just two games after project restart. The first was the 3-0 defeat to Manchester United when Potter took the bizarre decision to play Lamptey as a right winger with Montoya in at right back. His other start came in the 5-0 hammering at the hands of Manchester City when Lamptey was rested.
At 29, Montoya is in the prime of his career and needs to be playing first team football. The Albion can now longer offer that. Martin Montoya could still have provided solid back up to Lamptey in 2020-21 and Brighton were under no pressure to sell, making the ease with which Brighton have paved the way for his departure to Real Betis a touch of class.
It will be Montoya’s second spell with the Seville-based club. He previously played 13 times at the wonderful Benito Villamarín Stadium in the second half of the 2015-16 season on loan from Barcelona.
Montoya leaves having made 57 appearances in all competitions for the Albion. We will miss seeing him looking very startled whenever he was recognised by a Brighton fan walking his dog.
