Speculation has been rife over the Argentine goalkeeper’s future at the club this summer, with most of it stemming from his emotional reaction after our last home game of last season.
_**READ MORE: [Villa could face difficult decision as key figure made priority target](https://talk-villa.com/aston-villa-transfer-news-jacob-ramsey-nottingham-forest-interest/)**_
Many interpreted his tears as a potential goodbye, but having returned to Bodymoor Heath this week for pre-season training, no such departure has materialised as of yet with Villa signing Marco Bizot this week to add competition and depth behind Martinez.
While it had been hoped that perhaps talk had gone quiet with no genuine offers on the table, [Argentine journalist Gaston Edul](https://x.com/gastonedul/status/1945164694999670893) now reports that Man Utd have ‘advanced’ for Martinez, and he suggests that there are already negotiations ongoing with Villa over a deal.
It remains to be seen just how accurate that report is, but ultimately it doesn’t mean that an agreement is even close at this stage between the two clubs, let alone with the player on personal terms. In turn, there is still seemingly a long way to go before such a move materialises, while Villa will undoubtedly want to ensure that we have a capable replacement lined up in case we do have to make further changes in the goalkeeper department.
Losing the 32-year-old would certainly be a blow for Villa given his importance to us with his quality between the posts and commanding presence in the box, his leadership, winning mentality and experience, and so ideally we’d keep hold of him this summer and continue to build around our core players.
That said, should a deal make sense for the club in terms of a transfer fee that meets our valuation, it could give us the opportunity to bring in a long-term replacement on a lesser salary to help reduce our wage bill, with UEFA’s SCR rules still a prominent issue.
Time will tell if anything comes of these latest touted talks, but for now, Martinez is still a Villa player and he’ll be busy preparing for the new season in a professional manner as we play our first pre-season friendly on Wednesday night against Walsall, with the possibility that he might feature or will perhaps more likely do so against Hansa Rostock at the weekend instead.
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