When the public-address voice at Villa Park intones the line-up, Emiliano Martínez still receives the reverent billing: the World Cup winner, the man many call the world’s best. Twice a Yashin Trophy recipient, the Argentina goalkeeper has been the club’s talisman since his £17m arrival in 2020. Yet beneath the plaudits, a season of small but costly slips has pushed the 33-year-old toward a defining moment in his Aston Villa story.
From hero to headline question
Martínez’s record at Villa is impressive: 234 appearances, 59 Premier League clean sheets, and a reputation forged on the biggest stage. But this campaign has exposed cracks. A failed summer move to Manchester United — a transfer that seemed tantalizingly close — has become a recurring subplot, and every miscue is now magnified under the spotlight of expectation.
The Old Trafford near-miss and its fallout
The drama of the transfer window still lingers. Villa appeared willing to let Martínez depart, exploring alternatives such as Brentford’s Mark Flekken, while United ultimately opted for Senne Lammens as a long-term investment. The decision left Martínez on the bench for a late-August defeat and sparked a period of speculation that has never fully faded. Manager Unai Emery has publicly praised him as “the best goalkeeper in the world,” yet the narrative of what might have been continues to swirl.
Numbers that comfort and numbers that worry
Statistically Martínez remains a top performer. He has saved 76.1% of shots faced — the highest in the league — and ranks highly on Opta’s goals-prevented list. But raw figures tell only part of the story. Villa have conceded 25 goals this season, and while some came with Marco Bizot between the posts, Martínez’s tally of three mistakes leading to goals — the most in the division — gnaws at confidence and headlines alike.
High-profile errors and the pressure cooker
The errors have been stark and public. A miscontrol at Anfield gifted Mohamed Salah a goal; a spilled corner against Arsenal allowed Gabriel to score; a recent failure to claim a shot contributed to Everton’s winner. Each incident has been replayed, analysed and used as evidence that Martínez’s once-imperious presence is not as unshakeable as it once was. The goalkeeper’s late withdrawals from warm-ups and a calf problem that sidelined him for the trip to Fenerbahçe have only added to the uncertainty.
The bench option and the summer decision
Marco Bizot, the 34-year-old Dutch signing, has stepped in admirably, keeping five clean sheets in 11 appearances. But Bizot is not a long-term answer, and Villa face a summer reckoning. Links to Inter Milan and talk of a full review of Martínez’s future suggest the club will make a clear call when the season ends. Martínez remains contracted until 2029, but contracts do not always dictate destiny.
Confidence, character and the lonely art of goalkeeping
Former England keeper Paul Robinson’s assessment cuts to the heart of the issue: goalkeeping is a confidence position. The outward calm demanded by the role masks inner turmoil when form dips. Martínez’s challenge is psychological as much as technical — to project the unflappable persona Villa’s defence needs while repairing the small errors that have become costly.
Verdict
For now, Martínez remains Emery’s number one. But the summer looms as a crossroads: stay and reclaim the imperious form that made him a club icon, or move on as Villa weigh ambition, finances and long-term planning. Either way, a chapter that began with World Cup glory and Yashin trophies is entering a tense, uncertain new phase — one that will define both player and club in equal measure.
