Pushing the envelope: Martinez’s style of gamesmanship had its fans but also drew severe criticism.
Back to the grind: It will be interesting to see how Martinez deals with the demands of club football after writing himself into Argentine folklore.
During Emiliano Martinez’s various loan spells between 2012 and 2019, the path to lifting the World Cup — a childhood dream — must have seemed forbiddingly improbable.
He was just 17 when he moved from Argentine club Independiente to Arsenal for £1m. It was a punt from the London club — a typical Arsene Wenger signing during that period of tight finances — for Martinez was talented, but a work in progress. He was loaned out as many as six times, but never received the volume of game-time either he or Arsenal wanted.
Being tossed around in an endless spin cycle can crush the spirit. But the Argentine shot-stopper never gave up on his dream. After breaking into the Arsenal first XI under Mikel Arteta in June 2020, when Bernd Leno was injured, he saw out the rest of the season as first choice. He also won silverware when Arsenal claimed the FA Cup.
But once he realised he wasn’t assured of a starting spot, he decided to shift to a club where he could play regularly and make a strong case for becoming the Argentina No. 1. He signed a four-year contract with Aston Villa in a £20 million transfer. The decision has clearly paid off.
For, earlier this month, Martinez was greeted by a crowd estimated at 100,000 in his hometown, Mar del Plata, having played a central, often dramatic, role in Argentina claiming world football’s biggest prize. The 30-year-old basked in the adulation as he showed the crowd his trophy as goalkeeper of the tournament and told them it was “not only for me but for all the kids, the little goalkeepers, who dream of going for the fourth star”.
Unshakeable belief
Wenger, who had watched the tournament at close quarters, saluted Martinez’s resilience. “We were aware of his huge qualities. He was determined and had a desire to learn and a big passion for the game,” Wenger told the Mirror. “Sometimes he went out on loan and didn’t even play. But it didn’t stop his belief and motivation. When I see him now play, knowing what he went through, I admire even more his achievement.”
Martinez is the first World Cup-winner from the resort town south of Buenos Aires, where tennis player Guillermo Vilas was previously the most famous sports personality. But after his heroics and antics in Qatar, it’s safe to say that Martinez’s fame isn’t confined to Mar del Plata. He is now one of the world’s best-known footballers. Almost everything he did, on and off the pitch, went viral — quite the achievement for a goalkeeper. “This is a beautiful thing, that a goalkeeper gets this recognition, because this is almost always given to strikers,” he said.
The manner in which he won this recognition has polarised opinion; it ranged from the sublime to the obnoxious. He wrote himself into Argentine folklore with his performance between the sticks, especially in crunch moments. He was immense in two penalty shootouts and also made a key save to deny Randal Kolo Muani during extra-time in the final.
But the nature of his gamesmanship during the shootouts and his celebrations after victory drew criticism. Martinez pushed the envelope of sportsmanship to put off rival penalty-takers, including chatting with them to disturb their concentration, disrupting their rhythm by asking the referee to check the ball’s placement, and even throwing the ball away before Aurelien Tchouameni’s spot kick and celebrating the miss with a dance.
Crude gesture
After the game, he was seen making a crude gesture with the golden glove trophy. Then, during Argentina’s victory parade in Buenos Aires, he was seen holding a baby doll with its face covered by a photograph of Kylian Mbappe. He also reportedly mocked Mbappe and Tchouameni during his victory speeches.
French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera was scathing about Martinez’s conduct, calling it “pitiful”, “inappropriate” and “pathetic”. The French Football Association has also reportedly lodged a formal complaint with the Argentina Football Association.
But those who know Martinez speak about another side of his character.
Writing in The Players’ Tribune, Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli described how the Argentine went out of his way to help him settle. “I couldn’t drive … You know who saved me? Emi Martinez. What a guy! He lived 10 minutes from my house, so he’d pick me up to take me to training and to the stadium. Sometimes we’d also pick up Dani Ceballos. Emi always tried to help everyone. Once, I even spent New Year’s Eve at his house with his family.”
Former Villa goalkeeping coach Neil Cutler spoke of Martinez’s constant quest for improvement. “He’s so emotional, he’s driven, he’s typical South American,” Cutler told the Athletic. “He’s so driven to win and improve every day.”
The result of this drive is an obsession with preparation. Martinez has tried to fix and enhance every aspect of his game, and often speaks of how he struggles to sleep when he concedes. He has worked with a psychologist to cope with these mental demands, something that helped after the opening loss to Saudi Arabia, when he said he felt like he had let his country down.
The Villa situation
It will be interesting to see how Martinez deals with life at Villa after the life-changing experience in Qatar. Will he be able to enjoy similar highs at club level? There certainly won’t be any shortage of suitors from Europe’s big guns. Another wrinkle is the presence of new head coach Unai Emery, with whom he reportedly had a “strained” relationship at Arsenal. Emery said recently that he would talk to Martinez about his controversial World Cup celebrations and there was speculation in the Spanish media that the manager wanted to sell the shot-stopper.
The departure of Cutler, who developed a strong bond with Martinez, is seen as another factor that might influence the Argentine’s decision on his future. But any move would require big money, for the 30-year-old recently signed a new five-year deal that runs till 2027. He has also repeatedly spoken about his gratitude to Villa for its role in helping him make Argentina’s squad for the Copa America, where he proved he could be a title-winning goalkeeper.
“They opened the doors for me,” Martinez said when he signed the new contract. “With the Copa America they might be worried about new clubs coming in and me going to play at a Champions League club and the first thing I say to the sporting director is, ‘I want to be here’. This is the club that helped me be a No.1. I play every single league game. I love everything about Aston Villa, especially the fans.”
It will be fascinating to see whether the situation changes, for the one thing you can say about Martinez is this: whether you love him or hate him, you feel compelled to watch him.