ESPN REPORT: Another Mega Star Commits To Aston villa supporters football….

ESPN REPORT: Another Mega Star Commits To Aston villa supporters football….

Emi Martinez is a world-class player, but there hasn’t been much speculation about a transfer; Villa could need to win the Champions League to make sure that doesn’t change.
March 7, Amsterdam, Netherlands On March 7, 2024, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa FC looks up during the UEFA Europa Conference League Play Offs match between AFC Ajax and Aston Villa FC at Johan Cruijff ArenA. (Image courtesy of BSR Agency/Getty Images/Joris Verwijst)
For Aston Villa, Emi Martinez continues to have a strong presence. (Image: Getty)
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By Michael Hincks, an independent sports journalist
10:45 a.m. on March 8, 2024
AMSTERDAM — Emiliano Martinez is not only a top-notch wind-up dealer.

Martinez is a fascinating and divisive figure who is adored by Argentines and Aston Villa supporters as well as the main target of jeers at almost every stadium he attends. Who else, after all, would act that way with a trophy following a World Cup victory?

He is special and irreplaceable for the nation and the club. Unai Emery values him equally at Villa, as evidenced by his 19-match starting streak for Argentina. He even participated in the team’s three FA Cup games this season, an occurrence that usually falls to the backup. As of right now, Robin Olsen is that, having only been called upon for five games this year.

Since joining Villa in 2020, Martinez has been a constant presence. The team’s supporters are happy to call Martinez their “world No. 1” because he won the Fifa best goalkeeper title in 2022.

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While he is a calm and composed player who is at ease on the ball and turned on, he is also prone to errors like any other stopper.

That was made clear on Thursday night during the goalless draw at Ajax. Martinez was attentive throughout a game that saw few clear-cut opportunities, and halfway through the second half, he produced an incredible one-handed stop to deny Kenneth Taylor what would have probably been the game-winning goal.

Great goalkeepers do this, and in keeping with tradition, he finished the evening as the Villa player most jeered by Ajax supporters; his dark art of wasting time at goal kicks annoys a lot of Premier League opponents.

All of that is a part of the Martinez package that Villa supporters could not imagine living without, but it is inevitable to think about the prospect that he may leave—he can play for practically any team in the world.

Recent rumors about Bayern Munich and Manchester United have not materialized into anything more than gossip, and the player, who has a contract with Villa Park through 2027, has shown no signs of dissatisfaction.

However, there’s always the chance that he wants Champions League football or is looking for a new challenge, which he is now fulfilling at Villa.

Still, they are in a vulnerable situation going into Sunday’s home match against Tottenham. The margin of fifth place, which would have opened up a Champions League spot, is far from assured and will mostly depend on how far Premier League teams advance in Europe. Right now, Emery’s team has to concentrate on placing fourth, which means a back-and-forth battle with Spurs that can go to the very end.

On March 7, 2024, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Aston Villa’s goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez is competing for his team against Ajax in the UEFA Nations League Round of 16 first leg of the 2023–2024 season at the Johan Cruijff ArenA. (Image courtesy of Nur Photo/Marcel van Dorst via Getty Images)
Martinez stopped Ajax with a crucial save in the second half for Villa. (Image: Getty)
Villa’s supporters, who dreamed big after defeating Manchester City and Arsenal in December, would be devastated if they lost, but it is hard to imagine that most of its spine—John McGinn and Ollie Watkins in particular—would want to move on.

The only players who fit into the other category are Martinez and maybe Douglas Luiz, but that is only a theory at this point.

The truth is that, after going 28 years without a trophy, winning a European trophy and playing Champions League football is an incredible feeling.

Furthermore, both seem more likely now that Martinez, their lone elite player, is signed.