Rapid rise for Martinez junior
Thursday, June 12, 2003
Article summary
SK Rapid Wien have made the SV Wörgl midfield player Sebastian Martinez their third summer signing.
Article body
Young talent
Martinez, who was out of contract at Wörgl, follows Martin Hiden and Thomas Burgstaller to the capital club, and his transfer continues Rapid's policy of buying young Austrian-based talent. The 25-year-old scored 35 goals in 69 appearances during a two-year spell with Wörgl, following a transfer from Club Nacional de Football in his native Uruguay.
Parental influence
Martinez, who has Austrian citizenship, also treads in the footsteps of father Alberto, a popular figure at FK Austria Wien in the late 1970s. Martinez senior was a member of the Austria side beaten by RSC Anderlecht in the 1978 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final - the first appearance by a Bundesliga team in a UEFA final.
In and out
While Martinez checked in at Rapid, German veteran Thomas Sobotzik left the club by mutual consent. The former 1. FC Kaiserslautern and Eintracht Frankfurt player had a year remaining on his contract.