FA backed to contact Arsenal as ‘unacceptable’ Emi Martinez footage surfaces online
Emi Martinez was captured on camera in an ugly exchange with some Arsenal fans after his side were beaten at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday.
Arsenal beat Villa 4-1, with goals from Gabriel, Martin Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus completing a perfect night for Mikel Arteta‘s team.
Many of the headlines have been dominated by fiery events that took place after, however, despite the game itself having lacked the same type of drama.
Unai Emery did not shake Mikel Arteta’s hand after Arsenal had won, with the Spaniard claiming that he’d waited for his opposition manager when footage showed that he had done nothing of the sort.
And Martinez was captured in a shouting match with the Arsenal fans when he was exiting the pitch, with Villa staff having to hold him back.
Ex-PGMOL chief slams ‘unacceptable’ behaviour
Martinez‘s feud with the Arsenal fans dates back well before Tuesday’s game. The Argentine spent 10 years on the books with the Gunners, eventually coming through to help Arteta’s side win the FA Cup in 2020.
With Bernd Leno returning from injury to take the number one shirt, the 33-year-old decided to move on, signing for Villa in the following summer.
It was the interviews that followed the move that first frustrated Arsenal fans, with Martinez describing the switch as a “step-up” in 2021.
Even then, there was not much more than a mere grievance towards the goalkeeper, but the fixtures that have followed have stoked the flames again and again.
Such is the way Martinez plays the game; the Argentine often frustrates opposition fans by time-wasting, winding up those who attempt to score past him, and celebrating passionately.
The more games he has played against the Gunners, the more the tensions have grown, and the more he has been booed and targeted with – sometimes good-hearted, sometimes not – chants.
The boiling point was clearly reached on Tuesday, with Arsenal fans filmed shouting expletives in the direction of Martinez, who attempted to respond.
Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett exclusively told Football Insider: “I will never condone the shouts of abuse towards players.
“This behaviour is unacceptable and is frankly something that Arsenal security need to take action on. If the FA have seen this, then they should contact Arsenal for their observations.”
Emi Martinez continues the skirmish on social media
Following Tuesday’s game, Martinez took to Instagram to complain about Arsenal’s opening goal.
Gabriel had jumped to meet Bukayo Saka‘s corner, with the Villa goalkeeper feeling as if he had been elbowed by the defender.
Replays showed that the Brazilian had his arm up, but the video assistant referee did not feel as if Martinez had been impeded.
The goalkeeper clearly disagreed, and shared a picture of the incident on social media with the hashtag “elbowallow”.