Emi Martinez is said to be attracting summer transfer interest from Manchester United, Barcelona and Saudi Arabia
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Sport
08:58, 20 May 2025
Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa
Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa(Image: Getty Images)
Mark Bosnich admits Emi Martinez’s emotional reaction at full time of Aston Villa’s final home match of the season “did seem like a goodbye”.
But the former Villa goalkeeper has told the club to think "very long and hard" over any decision to sell the Argentine stopper this summer.
Martinez has been linked with an exit from Villa Park and the speculation has ramped up after the last home match against Tottenham.
An emotional Martinez was tearful as he left the pitch after Villa’s 2-0 win against Spurs which has sparked a theory it might have been his last match at Villa Park.
Villa boss Unai Emery didn’t dampen talk of Martinez leaving the club this summer.
When asked if Martinez and Leon Bailey, who has also been linked with an exit, could leave the club this summer, Emery said: “Now we are focused on the matches we are playing. It is the last match here.
“I don’t know. We will see. We will see about the team, the players. They are responding and are so focused on how we are preparing each match.
“We have more points to play for against Manchester United. We will see how we can get better for the next season.”
Argentine TV channel DSports report the World Cup winner “has offers” from both Manchester United and Barcelona, while Martinez has also been linked with a big-money move to Saudi Arabia.
Speaking about the subject on Sky Sports, Bosnich said: “I know they (Villa) have the PSR rules but I would caution, not Emi, but the club to be very, very careful because replacing someone in such an important position is easier said than done.
“I think really both himself and the club have unfinished business. The way they are going and projected to be going, they are going all the way.
“By that I mean they are going to be serious title challengers within the next couple of years.
“I would think very, very long and hard. Unless you have a ready-made replacement, which I would find unbelievable because we are talking about arguably the best goalkeeper in the world right now.
“Or unless behind the scenes we don’t know what is happening and Emi has said he is ready for a new challenge. If that is the case it is a different story altogether.
“But please, I would say think very, very carefully before you start tinkering with someone who has been such an important part of Aston Villa’s recent journey.”
On Martinez’s emotions after the match against Spurs, he added: “It really stirred something inside of me because I think he has been absolutely fantastic for Aston Villa.
“He has been a major part of Villa’s resurgence, not only in the league but also in Europe as well.
“For me he was the final bit of the jigsaw for Argentina to go and win the World Cup.
“The first thing I thought was: ‘Is he OK?’. Then I started thinking about it and digesting about it and it did seem like a goodbye.”
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