Emiliano Martínez

Damián Emiliano Martínez Romero (born 2 September 1992) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Aston Villa and the Argentina national team.

Martínez trained at Independiente's youth ranks before moving to Premier League club Arsenal in 2010. At Arsenal, he initially served as understudy, being loaned to various clubs, before breaking into the starting line-up in 2019, featuring in the Premier League and helping the club win a FA Cup and FA Community Shield. In September 2020, Martínez moved to fellow Premier League club Aston Villa in a transfer worth £20 million. In his first season at the club, he kept a club-record fifteen clean sheets in the Premier League.

Martínez represented Argentina in junior international matches from 2009 to 2011, playing on under-17 and under-20 levels. He earned his first senior cap for the Argentina national team in 2021, helping his nation win the 2021 Copa América, receiving the Golden Glove award and keeping a clean sheet in the final. Martínez went on to win the 2022 FIFA World Cup, where he also won the best goalkeeper of the tournament, the Golden Glove, for his performances. For these achievements, he was also named The Best FIFA Goalkeeper in 2022 and received the Yashin Trophy in 2023.

Club career

Independiente

Born in Mar del Plata, Martínez started his career playing for Independiente's youth team. In 2009, shortly after his 17th birthday, he was invited to trial at Arsenal, and was initially offered a youth contract.

Arsenal

2010–2019: Loan moves and fringe appearances

After impressing in a trial and being approved for a work permit, Martinez was formally registered as an Arsenal player in July 2010.

After injuries to Ryan Clarke and Wayne Brown, and the termination of Connor Ripley's loan, Martínez went on emergency loan to Oxford United, making his debut in the Football League in their final game of the season against Port Vale in League Two on 5 May 2012; Port Vale won 3–0. Later that year, Martinez was named on the Arsenal substitute bench for their fixtures away at Stoke City on 26 August and against Liverpool on 2 September, as cover for the injured Wojciech Szczęsny and Łukasz Fabiański, respectively. On 26 September, he made his Arsenal debut in a 6–1 home win against Coventry City in the third-round of the League Cup. He made his second Arsenal appearance in the following round in a 7–5 win away to Reading. Martínez subsequently transferred to Championship club Sheffield Wednesday on an emergency 28-day loan on 15 October 2013. He made his debut for Wednesday on 23 November, against Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield Town. Martínez's loan was eventually extended until the end of the season.

After returning to Arsenal, Martínez was an unused substitute as Arsenal won the 2014 FA Community Shield on 10 August, with a 3–0 win over Manchester City at Wembley Stadium. He made his debut in the Champions League soon after, helping Arsenal defeat Anderlecht 2–1 in the group stage. He then made his Premier League debut as a second half substitute, replacing the injured Szczęsny against Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium on 22 November. With injuries to backup goalkeeper David Ospina, Martínez played his second Champions League game on 26 November, keeping a clean sheet in a 2–0 victory over Borussia Dortmund. His "faultless" performance in the match led to him being named in the UEFA Team of the Week. He made his first Premier League start on 29 November against West Bromwich Albion, and also started against Southampton four days later; he kept two clean sheets as Arsenal won both matches 1–0.

On 20 March 2015, Martínez joined Championship club Rotherham United on an emergency loan until the end of the season. He made his debut the following day against South Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday, conceding two added-time goals in a 3–2 home defeat. On 2 August, Martínez was an unused substitute as new signing Petr Čech played for Arsenal in the 2015 Community Shield, a 1–0 win over rivals Chelsea. On 11 August, he joined Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers on a season-long loan. After making 15 appearances in the opening months of the campaign, he suffered a thigh injury that kept him out of contention for several months and was unable to regain his starting place afterwards. He spent the 2016–17 season at Arsenal, and played five matches during the campaign, including two Premier League appearances against Crystal Palace and West Ham United.

On 2 August 2017, he joined La Liga club Getafe on a season-long loan, and on 23 January 2019, he was loaned to Championship club Reading until the end of the season. At Reading, Martínez made his debut on 29 January against Bolton Wanderers, and won the man of the match award against Aston Villa a few days later.

2019–2020: Breakthrough and departure

With Bernd Leno being taken off injured during the first half of Arsenal's defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion on 20 June 2020, Martínez came off the bench to make his first Premier League appearance since the 2016–17 season. This led to Martínez seeing out the season as first choice goalkeeper at the club and was highly commended for a string of stellar performances, with former Arsenal striker Ian Wright describing him as "commanding" and as having played "brilliantly" during his extended spell in the team. On 1 August, Martínez was selected to start in the FA Cup Final against Chelsea, he went on to make some crucial saves to help Arsenal win their 14th FA Cup; after lifting the trophy he was visibly emotional and reduced to tears.

Martínez started in the 2020 Community Shield against Liverpool on 29 August, which Arsenal won on penalties. Following the match, there was much speculation that Martínez would leave the club with Bernd Leno returning and the player himself stated that he either wanted to stay at the club and be first-choice keeper or leave on a permanent basis. With reported interest from a number of Premier League and foreign clubs, including Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion, Martínez was left out of the squad to face Fulham on the opening day of the league season.

Aston Villa

On 16 September 2020, Martínez transferred to fellow Premier League club Aston Villa in a deal worth up to £20 million. He signed a four-year contract. On 21 September, Martínez made his debut for Villa, saving a penalty from John Lundstram in a 1–0 home win against Sheffield United. In his first season at Aston Villa, Martínez equalled Brad Friedel's club record for clean sheets in a Premier League season, with 15. He was also named Aston Villa Supporters' Player of the Season.

On 21 January 2022, Martínez signed a three-year contract extension which will see him contracted to Villa until the end of the 2026–27 season. On 27 July, ahead of the new season, Martínez was named one of the two Aston Villa vice-captains, alongside Diego Carlos. On 1 April 2023, Martínez made his 100th Premier League appearance for Aston Villa in a 2–0 away victory over Chelsea. That clean sheet was Martínez's 34th, which broke the club record of the most clean sheets in a goalkeeper's first 100 games – which was previously set at 33, by both Mark Bosnich and Brad Friedel. On 18 April 2024, he saved two penalties in a 4–3 victory over Lille following a 3–3 draw on aggregate, which qualified his club to the Conference League semi-finals.

International career

Martínez was called up to the Argentina senior squad to replace Oscar Ustari to face Nigeria in June 2011. He received his second senior call up against Germany and Ecuador on 9 and 13 October 2019; he was an unused substitute for both friendly matches.

Martínez made his international debut on 3 June 2021, in a 1–1 draw with Chile in a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification match. He subsequently made his competitive debut in a major tournament on 14 June, once again in a 1–1 draw against the same opponent in his team's opening match of the 2021 Copa América at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos in Brazil. In the 57th minute, he saved a penalty from Arturo Vidal, but he failed to prevent Eduardo Vargas from scoring on the rebound. On 6 July, Martínez saved three spot kicks in a 3–2 penalty shootout victory for Argentina over Colombia in the semi-final of the tournament. He went on to finish the tournament with a clean sheet in the 1–0 victory over Brazil in the final. Martínez was also awarded the 2021 Copa América's Golden Glove award as the best keeper of the tournament for his performances.

On 1 June 2022, Martínez kept a clean sheet as Argentina won 3–0 against reigning European Champions Italy at Wembley Stadium in the 2022 Finalissima. Martínez was included in Argentina's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and played in each of his team's games. He saved two penalties from Virgil Van Dijk and Steven Berghuis in a shoot-out against the Netherlands in the quarter-final, helping his team make it to the last four. In the final, Martínez saved a shot from a 1 on 1 with Randal Kolo Muani in the last minute of extra time to force the match to a penalty shoot-out. He later saved penalties from Kingsley Coman and Aurélien Tchouaméni in the penalty shoot-out, helping Argentina win the tournament via a 4–2 shootout victory after the game had ended in a 3–3 draw after extra time. He won the Golden Glove award for his performances in the tournament. Martínez also won the 2022 The Best FIFA Men's Goalkeeper award.

Style of play

Martínez garnered notoriety for his performances in penalty shoot-outs and subsequently gained a reputation for saving penalty kicks. In Martínez's three penalty shoot-outs for Argentina, opponents have scored only seven times from 14 attempts, a 50 percent conversion rate. By the end of 2022, Martínez saved seven of the 35 penalties he has faced during matches throughout his career, as well as another three missed – resulting in a 71 percent success rate for opponents. Combining the 59 penalties faced by Martínez in regulation and competitive shoot-outs during that time span, Martínez saved 13 and seen five missed outright – a 69.5 percent conversion rate.

However, Martínez's role went beyond simply saving the penalties, but also using psychological tactics and measures of gamesmanship to distract and intimidate the opposing penalty takers. Former goalkeeper Matt Pyzdrowski, writing for The Athletic, would elaborate Martínez's style: "in penalty-kick situations, Martínez has one of the most aggressive and disruptive approaches that you will ever see. His ultimate aim is to put as much pressure on the taker as possible and create a moment of hesitation or doubt during their run-up. And as we've seen time and again in recent years, it works."

Martínez's approach to penalties has drawn criticism for lacking sportsmanship. French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who participated in the same penalty shoot-out with Martínez and Argentina in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final, but on the losing end, would later state "there are some things I can't do. Making a fool of myself in goal, rattling my opponents, crossing that line... I'm too rational and honest a man to go that way." The International Football Association Board was expected to eventually change its rules to discourage keepers like Martínez from employing similar tactics in the future. When asked about the potential rule changes, Martínez responded "I already saved the penalties that I had to save."

Notable examples

• In the 2021 Copa América semi-final against Colombia, Martínez subjected several of the Colombian penalty takers to a barrage of trash talk. Three of the Colombian players—Davinson Sánchez, Yerry Mina, and Edwin Cardona—had their penalty kicks saved, which allowed Argentina to advance to the final.
• During the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Manchester United at Old Trafford, United were awarded a penalty in stoppage time, with Bruno Fernandes being the player to take it. As preparations for the penalty began, Martínez openly questioned Fernandes why his United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo was not taking it. Fernandes missed the penalty by kicking it over the crossbar, securing the 1–0 result and ensuring a win for Aston Villa at Old Trafford.
• Martínez employed a number of gamesmanship tactics during the 2022 FIFA World Cup quarter-final against the Netherlands. He pretended to hand the ball to Steven Berghuis before dropping it to force Berghuis to pick it up and set the ball himself, kicked the ball to the side while staring down Teun Koopmeiners prior to his turn, and also kicked the ball into the centre circle as Luuk de Jong drew closer to the 18-yard box. Two Netherlands players—Berghuis and Virgil van Dijk—had their penalties saved by Martínez, resulting in Argentina advancing to the semi-final.
• In the 2022 FIFA World Cup final against France, Martínez again used the same tactics. Before both Kylian Mbappé and Kingsley Coman placed the ball for their kicks, Martínez argued with the referee to check if each one was definitely on the spot in order, to disrupt their preparations. Mbappé scored, though Coman had his penalty saved by Martínez. Prior to Aurélien Tchouaméni's kick, Martínez grabbed the ball and then tossed it to the side, forcing Tchouaméni to retrieve it and adding more time and pressure to take his penalty, which he missed. Martínez then shouted "I've watched you" and gesticulated to Randal Kolo Muani several times as the latter prepared for his shot. The referee issued a yellow card to Martínez, and Kolo Muani converted his penalty.
• In the second leg of the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League quarter-finals in Nord, France between Aston Villa and Ligue 1 side Lille LOSC, the Lille supporters proved they had not forgotten Martínez's World Cup antics, booing and jeering him heavily throughout the game. When the match culminated in a penalty shoot-out, Martínez was booked for gesturing towards the opposing fans to quiet after blocking a shot from Nabil Bentaleb. Despite being booked earlier in the game, Martínez was not sent off for a second yellow card, as the yellow card in the game did not carry over into the shoot-out. Villa would subsequently win 4–3 on penalties, with Martínez saving the final shot of the game against Benjamin André.

Personal life

Martínez was given the names "Damián Emiliano" on his birth certificate, which caused confusion when he signed for Arsenal and everyone at the club was calling him Damián. "My name was actually going to be Emiliano Damian on my Argentinian ID," Martínez later explained. But when my mum went to do it in the post office, I don't know where she done it, she was waiting hours and hours in the queue and when they done it they put Damian Emiliano first. To do it again she would have to wait two, three hours so she went 'it's ok, just do it like that, we're going to call him Emi anyway'. It was a bit confusing but now everyone calls me Emi. Damian used to be my grandad's middle name. My mum [originally] wanted just two names - Emiliano Martinez - but because my grandad passed away before I was born she wanted to put Damian in between the two names to have my grandad's name, nothing else."

He is nicknamed "Dibu" (abbreviation of Dibujo, Spanish for Drawing), after an animated character in the Argentine telenovela Mi familia es un dibujo. Martinez was given the nickname as a young player by former goalkeeper and goalkeeper coach Miguel Ángel Santoro at Independiente, at a time when the series was highly popular.

Martínez has been married to Amanda "Mandinha" (née Gama) since 2017. The couple have a son, Santi, and a daughter, Ava.

On 22 December 2022, after winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup with the national team, Martínez was given a welcome reception at Las Toscas resort, in his native city of Mar del Plata. According to the local press, there was an attendance of more than 150,000 people, both locals and tourists.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 13 May 2024

International

As of match played 20 June 2024

Honours

Arsenal

• FA Cup: 2019–20
• FA Community Shield: 2014, 2015, 2020

Argentina

• FIFA World Cup: 2022
• Copa América: 2021
• CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions: 2022

Individual

• Yashin Trophy: 2023
• The Best FIFA Men's Goalkeeper: 2022
• FIFA World Cup Golden Glove: 2022
• Copa América Best Goalkeeper: 2021
• Copa América Team of the Tournament: 2021
• Aston Villa Player of the Season: 2020–21