Once he decided to leave Sociedad though, he said he had his sights set on Arsenal “because I think their style of play is a good fit for me” he revealed on the day he signed.
A couple of months on from then, Martin’s already starting to show why he can be right at home in our midfield. The 26-year-old has been on the pitch for every minute of our opening five games, and scored a brilliant brace against Nottingham Forest to quicky endear himself to the home supporters.
So how does he reflect upon his first few months in an Arsenal shirt? “It’s been good,” he smiles. “I've settled in well because everyone has made it really easy for me. I’ve played in the Premier League but I also played a lot in pre-season which helped me too, and I think it's reflected in my performances on the pitch.
“I feel at ease and I'm really pleased with how things have gone. “Coming to Arsenal is obviously a big change,” he adds. “It's natural to feel a bit anxious about what might happen, but everything has gone very smoothly and naturally. People have treated me really well, and I think that's showing on the pitch too.
“This is a huge moment in my career. It's the move I was looking for, one I wanted to make. Of course, it's a big change, but I'm ready.”
Although the surroundings are all new for Zubi, the company is not. As well as being part of a trio of Spanish summer signings – along with Kepa Arrizabalaga and Cristhian Mosquera – he’s also reuniting with Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard from his Real Sociedad days.
He spent five seasons alongside Mikel in the Sociedad engine room, and was a teammate of Martin when he spent a season on loan there from Real Madrid in 2019/20.
The Gunners connections also extended to Nacho Monreal, who played behind Zubi for two seasons after leaving north London in 2019.
Zubi admits it was nice to have some friendly faces around the place when he arrived in July. “The Spanish group has been very helpful because of the language barrier,” he said.
“Three of us Spanish players have joined this year, which makes things easier, but I don't want to focus just on the Spanish players. I'd like to learn English quickly and get to know everyone.
“I believe that everyone is making a genuine effort to help me naturally and without any fuss. I have to say that I'm really happy and it feels like I've been here longer than I actually have.
“I haven't had much time in London itself yet. I was travelling a lot in pre-season, then we have been busy with the season, so I can't really give you a good answer about what it's like to live in London yet, but I’m looking forward to discovering that as well.
“But of course it's always helpful having people you know in new places. It makes everything much easier at the end of the day. Besides everything that happens here at Arsenal, I think it can also be a big plus off the pitch.
“I didn’t really speak to Mikel (Merino) about it before I signed, because we both had intense seasons for our clubs, I still had targets to meet with Real Sociedad. It wasn't until the season ended that it felt like the right time to discuss things.”