Aston Villa shock at Chelsea: ‘Emi Martinez incident will never be seen again’
Emi Martinez left both Neil Warburton and Alan Smith shocked after the Aston Villa goalkeeper almost made a huge error that might never be seen again at Chelsea.
It was a tough first-half for Unai Emery’s side at Stamford Bridge on Sunday (1 December), with goals from Nicolas Jackson and Enzo Fernandez putting the hosts well in control.
There were other let-offs for the visitors as well, including when Chelsea were awarded an indirect free-kick inside the opposition area after Martinez picked up a Pau Torres touch inside his own box.
The Aston Villa goalkeeper also got away with one just before the half-hour mark. After taking his time with the ball at his feet inside the area, Martinez then played a loose pass directly at Jackson.
Both then dived to the ball, with the Argentine managing to get it to safety, but not before leaving those watching on stunned.
Speaking about the incident on BBC Sport (14:02), former Nottingham Forest manager Warburton said: “Nobody was ready for it. With Emi Martinez’s quality I don’t think we will ever see that again! Somehow Martinez gets away it.”
Providing co-commentary on Sky Sports, Smith (14:00) was equally surprised, with the ex-Arsenal striker saying: “He’s renowned isn’t he, Emi Martinez, for holding onto the ball, trying to suck in the opposition. I don’t think there’s a keeper in the Premier League who holds onto it for longer.
“But he doesn’t normally make rickets like that, and he just about gets away with it. Oh dearo dear. If Villa get something from this they’ll look at this first half and these last 15 minutes and wonder how.”
Emi Martinez will surely not repeat Chelsea vs Aston Villa error
As Warburton himself said it is hard to imagine anything like this ever happening from Martinez again after it backfired at Stamford Bridge and seemingly injured him.
A two-time reigning winner of the Yashin award, the Argentine is obviously one of the very best goalkeepers in the world.
Moments like this are therefore incredibly rare, and having got away with this one, the Aston Villa man may be reluctant to take a chance such as this again.
Indeed, while they may not have conceded from this incident, it may still have come at a cost for Emery’s side.
Martinez was substituted at half-time with the apparent injury, with Robin Olsen coming on in his place as Villa were beaten 3-0 in the capital.
That could therefore leave Aston Villa without someone deemed hugely important to their plans going forward, while the fact Olsen has not always convinced may also be a bit of a concern.
With all that in mind, those associated with the club will surely hope to avoid any moment such as this again in the future.
In other news, Aston Villa are closing in on the signing of a player from the Bundesliga.
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