Arsenal offloaded Emi Martinez to Aston Villa five years ago but could now make a surprise play to bring the Argentina international back to north London in the transfer window
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10:34, 25 May 2025
Emi Martinez
Emi Martinez could be poised to make an unexpected return to Arsenal
Arsenal are said to be considering a sensational move to bring Emi Martinez BACK to The Emirates - five years after he was brutally shown the door by Mikel Arteta.
Martinez, 32, has gone on to establish himself as one of the Premier League's top goalkeepers since joining Aston Villa. There is speculation, though, that the World Cup-winning Argentina star is planning to seek a new challenge at the end of the season after he became emotional following Villa's final home game of the season last week.
Prior to his breakout years at Villa Park, Martinez spent eight years on the books at Arsenal, who loaned him out numerous times before he had a brief spell in favour before his departure.
However, it's now been claimed by The Sun that not only are Arsenal interested in bringing Martinez back, but that the veteran shot-stopper would relish the chance to finally become the Gunners' No.1 keeper.
The shock development comes amid the club's fears over losing David Raya off the back of another stellar season for the Spaniard. Raya, 29, is understood to have been identified by Real Madrid as the long-term successor to Thibaut Courtois.
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There is further interest in the former Brentford keeper with Atletico Madrid also keen in the wake of concerns that they, too, could lose their No.1, Jan Oblek, to Saudi Arabia.
Raya has gone from strength to strength since joining Arsenal in a controversial move back in 2023, initially on loan. Such has been Raya's progress that Jamie Carragher recently claimed that Arteta's decision to replace Aaron Ramsdale while the former Arsenal star was at the peak of his powers was one of the Spaniard's 'best ever' calls.
"I picked Alisson as the best goalkeeper in the Premier League this season but I was very close to picking David Raya," Carragher said recently on The Overlap.
David Raya
David Raya has emerged as a transfer target for Real Madrid
"Alisson had that performance against PSG and that was one of the best we’ve seen from a goalkeeper so maybe that stuck in my head. But Raya probably had five or six world-class saves this season. There was one against Aston Villa and Ollie Watkins but it was that long ago that it feels like last season.
"That was one of the best decisions Mikel Arteta made, it was brave because Aaron Ramsdale was a bit of a fans’ favourite but Arsenal were never going to win anything big with him in goal.
"They haven’t done that with Raya yet either by the way but it was a good decision."
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