Atlético Ottawa revealed on Wednesday that it has sent midfielder Viti Martínez out on loan to his native Spain, reaching an agreement with Segunda División B side Alavés B.

Martínez will remain with the Spanish club until training begins for the 2021 Canadian Premier League season.

“I am happy to see Viti continuing to play and compete at a high level. We are looking forward to seeing him develop while training throughout the Canadian Premier League off-season,” Atlético Ottawa CEO Fernando López said in a press release.

Martínez was an important piece in Ottawa’s run at The Island Games, playing the full 90 minutes in all but one of the club’s matches (sitting out only the draw with FC Edmonton).

The 23-year-old midfielder provided one of the best moments of the season for the expansion side, scoring a 90th-minute goal against Pacific FC to scrape out a 1-0 victory, just the second in the club’s history. That moment kept Atlético Ottawa alive heading into the final weekend of first round of The Island Games.

Ottawa initially signed Martínez in April, giving him his first opportunity to play outside of his home country. The native of Mataró, Spain, joined as the club’s sixth international player.

Martínez will be joining Alavés B, the reserve team for La Liga outfit Deportivo Alavés, who play in Vitoria-Gasteiz in the Basque Country. The side competes in the third tier of Spanish football, in regional group 2, where they play against the reserve teams of Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad, as well as plenty of other independent sides. Alavés B finished 11th in their 20-team group last season.

The midfielder has 30 previous games of experience in the Spanish third tier, as well as 14 in the second division, all of which came before his 23rd birthday.

“I would like to thank Atlético Ottawa for making my arrival at Deportivo Alavés possible. This will help me continue to grow and be active as a player. Right now, I am 100 per cent focused on my new team (and) no doubt I want return to Ottawa for the 2021 season,” Martínez said in a statement.