EMILIANO MARTINEZ appeared emotional as he lifted the lid on his love for Arsenal.
The 31-year-old goalkeeper made crucial saves as Aston Villa dented the Gunners’ title hopes with a shock 2-0 win yesterday.
After the game, Martinez celebrated with the club’s travelling fans and did his best Jurgen Klopp impression as he punched the air to cheers from the away end.
Prior to joining Aston Villa, the Argentine spent ten years at Arsenal.
And asked about his love for his former club, Martinez emotionally said: “I think it was ten to eleven years here. I still love the club and I still have friends here.
“When you spend ten years of your life – I came here as a young lad and I left as a man.
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“I always love this club and I always will.”
Martinez arrived at Arsenal as a teenager in 2010 and went on to play 38 times, helping them win the FA Cup during his final season.
He was loaned out six times during his decade at the Emirates to the likes of Sheffield Wednesday, Wolves, Reading.
Martinez is now hoping to fire Aston Villa into next season’s Champions League and lift the Conference League.
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With Unai Emery’s side now three points above Tottenham in the race for fourth, the keeper said: “We knew we needed a big away win for our Champions League hopes.
“This is the first step, we have got five finals left and we need to enjoy this this one.
“And we go on Thursday [against Lille] to try to qualify for the semi-finals.”
Villa are 2-1 up against the French side after the first leg.
Martinez’s rise to stardom
Emi Martinez began at Argentine club Independiente and was signed by Arsenal as a teenager following a successful trial.
Soon after his arrival, the keeper was sent on an emergency loan to Oxford in League Two.
He struggled to break into Arsenal’s team for years, being loaned to Championship sides Sheffield Wednesday, Rotherham, Wolves, Reading and LaLiga outfit Getafe.
But Martinez got his break at Arsenal after No1 Bernd Leno got injured in 2020.
Despite impressing while filling in for the German, he was sold by Mikel Arteta to Aston Villa.
He has since helped the club climb from relegation contenders to Champions League hopefuls.
All while becoming Argentina’s first-choice goalkeeper and lifting the World Cup and Golden Glove at the tournament after penalty shootout heroics in the quarter-final and final.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
