Dibu Martinez was very close to transferring to Juventus this summer, but the black and white leaders were not completely convinced of the physical condition of the Argentine goalkeeper. The hand injury, which was presented as a minor problem, actually turned out to be very serious. A behind-the-scenes story that was revealed by Dibu himself during an interview. "I played the entire World Cup with a broken finger," Martinez said.
"The doctors put a brace on my finger and during the first few weeks I was able to train by jumping with only one arm. A few days before the final, I was able to train normally. If the ball hit me directly on the tip of my finger, the whole finger could explode. Every time the ball came my way, I prayed that my finger wouldn't come out of place," the goalkeeper confessed.
During the interview, Dibu also revealed the condition of his hand. Playing with a broken finger certainly hasn't helped. His ring finger is noticeably crooked and bends abnormally. The problem becomes even more apparent when the Argentina national team goalkeeper tries to curl his fingers. The damaged finger doesn't bend all the way to the palm, making it impossible to make a good fist.
The Argentine goalkeeper was very close to Juventus during the summer. Dibu was the first choice to replace Di Gregorio, but the Bianconeri failed to find an agreement with Aston Villa. The price asked by the English club was too high for a 34-year-old goalkeeper, who also had such a serious physical problem. Thus, the Juventus leaders changed direction and turned to the Italian Vicario, while the Argentine ended up at Chelsea, where, as expected, he was forced to stop almost immediately to undergo surgery on his finger.
