Emi Martinez ‘Awful’ in Aston Villa first half moment v RB Leipzig
Alan Shearer was left baffled by Aston Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez as his error allowed Lois Openda to equalise for RB Leipzig.
The Villans go in at half-time level with the German side but, after a positive opening 45 minutes, arguably should be ahead.
John McGinn opened the scoring after just three minutes, capping off an excellent move with a tidy finish which left Peter Gulacsi with no chance.
This lead only lasted 24 minutes before the Belgian international scored an equaliser thanks to a Martinez mistake which shocked Shearer live on Amazon Prime Sport (10 December).
He said: “I spoke too soon in saying they look comfortable. They were but, the goalkeeper, what is he doing?
“It’s just a long hopeful punt up the park, he comes out the box and thinks the bounce is going to get to him but it never does. Awful error.”
Emi Martinez has stinker for Aston Villa v RB Leipzig
The Argentina international is typically so good for the Villans but this moment against Leipzig was certainly a blunder that he won’t want to remember.
The 32-year-old had painfully little to do for the most part at the Red Bull Arena and still let Unai Emery down when the moment came.
This saw him make one error that led to a goal while conceding from the only shot on target that the home side had in the first half, saving 0 per cent of RB’s shots on target [FotMob].
The German outfit registered six shots in the first half but the majority were high and or wide of the ex-Arsenal man’s goal.
Martinez did maintain a 79 per cent pass accuracy across his 14 attempted passes but there was much more that he could have done with his mistake.
His one high claim and one recovery is a silver lining to his game but this won’t take away from the frustration of going in at the break level.
This isn’t what his side deserved given the general performance level and Emery will be hopeful his side will continue in the same vein in the second half.
In other Aston Villa news, fans will be drooling over embarrassing Jack Grealish footage that has emerged from Manchester City.
For more Aston Villa news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.