EMI MARTINEZ and his wife were mercilessly BOOED as they arrived at the Ballon d’Or.
But the Argentine, 32, had the last laugh as he was handed the Yashin Trophy again.
The pantomime villain is hated by French fans following his antics in the 2022 World Cup final.
Not only did he put in a superb performance and play his genius mind games in the penalty shootout, Martinez riled up the France supporters even more with his provocative celebration with the Golden Glove trophy.
Martinez was crowned Yachin Trophy winner in 2023 following his World Cup exploits.
And on his return to Paris on Monday night, he was given another hostile reception.
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The Aston Villa stopper, decked out in a black tuxedo, headed down the red carpet holding hands with his glamorous partner Mandinha, who opted for a flowing red number.
However, the boos were clear to hear – and neither of them particularly seemed to see the funny side.
Martinez did give a brief thumbs-up – but whether that was genuine or a sarcastic response to someone out of shot was uncertain.
The couple then posed for photos before heading into the Theatre du Chatelet for the prestigious awards ceremony.
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And once inside, Martinez was confirmed as the world’s best goalkeeper for the second year running after helping Villa into the Champions League and winning the Copa America with Argentina.
He pipped the likes of Spain No1 Unai Simon, Real Madrid stopper Andriy Lunin and Gianluigi Donnarumma to become the first goalkeeper to defend the crown.
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In the overall Ballon d’Or award, Martinez finished 18th in the vote – ahead of Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, Antonio Rudiger, Cole Palmer and others.
However, it was Rodri who collected the top men’s award after his exploits with Manchester City and helping Spain win Euro 2024.
Rodri beat Real Madrid trio Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham and Dani Carvajal plus Erling Haaland and home-favourite Kylian Mbappe in the vote.
His compatriot Lamine Yamal came eighth but secured the Kopa Trophy for the best young player aged 21 or under.
The 17-year-old starred for Spain at the Euros and became the third Spaniard in four years to collect the gong – following Pedri, Gavi and then Bellingham.
In the Ballon d’Or Feminin for women’s football, it was more success for Spain as Aitana Bonmati collected her second trophy on the bounce.
Ballon d’Or 2024 results
- 1: Rodri, Man City and Spain
- 2: Vinicius Jr, Real Madrid and Brazil
- 3: Jude Bellingham, Real Madrid and England
- 4: Dani Carvajal, Real Madrid and Spain
- 5: Erling Haaland, Man City and Norway
- 6: Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid and France
- 7: Lautaro Martinz, Inter Milan and Argentina
- 8: Lamine Yamal, Barcelona and Spain
- 9: Toni Kroos, Real Madrid and Germany
- 10: Harry Kane, Bayern Munich and England
- 11: Phil Foden, Man City and England
- 12: Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen and Germany
- 13: Dani Olmo, Barcelona and Spain
- 14: Ademola Lookman, Atalanta and Nigeria
- 15: Nico Williams, Athletic Bilbao and Spain
- 16: Granit Xhaka, Bayer Leverkusen and Switzerland
- 17: Federico Valverde, Real Madrid and Uruguay
- 18: Emi Martinez, Aston Villa and Argentina
- 19: Martin Odegaard, Arsenal and Norway
- 20: Hakan Calhanoglu, Inter Milan and Turkey
- 21: Bukayo Saka, Arsenal and England
- 22: Antonio Rudiger, Real Madrid and Germany
- 23: Ruben Dias, Man City and Portugal
- 24: William Saliba, Arsenal and France
- 25: Cole Palmer, Chelsea and England
- 26: Declan Rice, Arsenal and England
- 27: Vitinha, PSG and Portugal
- 28: Alejandro Grimaldo, Bayer Leverkusen and Spain
- 29: Mats Hummels, Roma and Germany
- 30: Artem Dovbyk, Roma and Ukraine
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
