'Pep Guardiola gave me the chance at Barcelona, he’s an incredible coach' – Martin Montoya poised for reunion
“Valdes, Pique, Puyol, Jordi Alba, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Fabregas, Messi, Pedro… and me,” Martin Montoya says in his native Spanish, smiling broadly. “Yes, a famous, famous moment.”
He pauses a moment, before breaking briefly into English. “It was a moment in history, a big moment in history and it was very important for me to have played in that team. It will be very difficult for that to ever happen again, at any club, anywhere in the world and it meant a lot to everyone. It meant a lot to Barcelona. It was a one-off.”
Montoya is recalling the evening of Nov 25, 2012 when, 14 minutes into a La Liga fixture away at Levante, right-back Dani Alves went off injured. Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova turned to the Brazilian’s under-study Montoya and for the first – and probably last - time ever the entire XI on the pitch were products of the club’s fabled La Masia academy. Barcelona won 4-0 and a dream was realised for Montoya, a Catalan, and for the club.
Three years earlier it was not Vilanova but his predecessor Pep Guardiola who had given Montoya his break at Barcelona in a pre-season friendly against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley. Now the 27-year-old defender will line up for Brighton against Guardiola’s Manchester City on Saturday.
“He [Guardiola] is the one who gave me the chance at Barcelona and he’s an incredible coach,” Montoya says. “How? Because he takes a team and educates them about football. He is very intelligent and he explains to every individual player what he wants. That is his greatest strength – how he takes a player aside and coaches him individually, one-on-one. And he always says the same thing: ‘what can you do to help the team improve and help yourself improve?’”
Montoya made his £6million deadline day move to Brighton from Valencia in the summer and after his accomplished “dream debut” in the impressive 3-2 home win against Manchester United has already become an important part of the team with his defensive nous and desire to attack.
And he knows what to expect when he faces City at the Etihad Stadium. “Guardiola has the same philosophy," he says. "He wants to play football from the back; he wants to play football and when you lose the ball you have to get it back. And that’s it. You start again."
Like Montoya, Guardiola is a product of La Masia and it is fascinating to hear an insight into what that represents. “I joined when I was nine,” explains Montoya, whose contemporaries included Marc Bartra, Marc Muniesa, Cristian Tello and Oriol Romeu. “And the same philosophy runs through the academy no matter what age you are.
"It has the same mentality – from the goalkeeper through the team, through every team. That’s the start, the football theme. But it is more than that. It is something that you take with you for the whole of your life. Everything you gain at La Masia will affect your life every day, with your studies as well, which are very important.
“I lived in a town [Gava] about 20 minutes away and there were so many players coming from all over Spain and further away and we were all in La Masia together. And every day all of the coaches are watching, observing and taking notes. It is not just about playing football or being one of the best players there it is very important to them how you behave and study at the same time. It is very important to be educated. The library is as important as the pitch. It’s good for your brain and it helps you as a footballer, a lot. But it also helps you in your life beyond football. If you have a clean head – a clear head, as you say – then you know what to do.
“So I kept studying until I was 24 and it helped me. I was studying for a degree in PE at university. I have not finished – not yet. I have done all the work, on all the subjects and just have my final assignment to complete. I will do it; I want to finish it. But it is hard now that I am living abroad.”
Despite a Champions League winners medal, despite three La Liga titles and two Copa del Reys Montoya knew he had to leave Barcelona to play more regularly – there had been loans to Inter Milan, and Real Betis before a permanent transfer to Valencia in 2016.
“It was very hard,” he admits of leaving Barcelona. “I was there from nine until 23 and I never saw myself leaving. I was leaving not just my team but my town as well. But the more important thing for a player who wants to play is that you have to do it. It was hard for me not to play. I needed that.”
Unfortunately Montoya eventually found his opportunities limited at Valencia also and, aware that he was frustrated, Brighton made their move – with their goalkeeper Mat Ryan playing his part. The pair had spent six months together at Mestalla.
“He contacted me on WhatsApp and sent me long messages telling me to come!” Montoya says. “He explained to me what life in Brighton is like, the town itself, about the team and he gave me a lot of recommendations. And he didn’t lie to me! I am very, very happy here.
“In Valencia I did not have many chances to play. So I wanted to leave and I was offered the chance to come to Brighton and play in the Premier League. It’s a team that I knew were looking at me, were interested and that made me even more enthusiastic about coming here. I have a lot of desire to play, to play in the Premier League and win. It’s like a new chance, a new start and a new possibility for me.”
Montoya also spoke to friends such as Chelsea’s Pedro and Southampton’s Romeu about what it is like to play in the Premier League along with Brighton captain Bruno and Ezequiel Schelotto. He certainly did his homework, including finding out about manager Chris Hughton.
“He’s a very important coach,” Montoya says. “And one who knows what he wants and is very good with the players.” There is no reason, he says, why Brighton cannot aim to qualify for the Europa League.
“For me it’s a different country, a different language, a different league, a different town – but it’s a new experience and I am very happy with the team which is ambitious to be at the very best level it can be. That’s what I want also.”
