What Emi Martinez must exactly do to win back the Aston Villa fanbase
Emi Martinez is far from popular among Aston Villa fans right now.
Martinez was strongly linked to Manchester United throughout the summer, particularly on deadline day, but a move away from Villa Park never materialised.
Rumours of a move to Old Trafford saw Unai Emery leave the Argentina international out as Villa fell to a 3-0 defeat against Crystal Palace.
This sparked annoyance from the claret and blue faithful, but that didn’t stop Martinez from contacting Lisandro Martinez at Man United to help force through a Red Devils switch.
Despite this, Martinez remains in B6 and has lost the backing from the supporters who had previously classed him as a legend, so he has a lot to do to rebuild that relationship.
Emi Martinez must apologise to Aston Villa fans immediately
Martinez cried on the pitch as Villa beat Tottenham last season, leaving many supporters resigned to the idea of losing the 33-year-old.
At the time, this was seen as a real blow and dampened the feeling around the Midlands ahead of the final day of the season with Champions League qualification on the line.
We now know that the Argentine’s head was elsewhere as he was sent off for a crazy challenge on Rasmus Hojlund against Ruben Amorim’s side.
This hasn’t helped his opinion with the Villa fanbase, who believe his actions indirectly resulted in finishing sixth, rather than fifth.
- Martinez got sent off for a last-man challenge on Hojlund
- Morgan Rogers later had a goal incorrectly ruled out by Thomas Bramall
- United went on to win 2-0 in the last game of the campaign
- Villa finished outside the Champions League places on goal difference
Now, that feeling has been combined with this transfer debacle, which has left his reputation in B6 as low as it has ever been since he joined from Arsenal.
In order to begin the process of building that acclaim back up, there is no doubt that an official apology is needed via either his own social media or Villa’s various platforms.
Considering the keeper shared an image of him holding up a peace symbol ahead of going on international duty after deadline day, this feels unlikely.
Emi Martinez has work to do vs Everton
If the ex-Arsenal man is to return to the starting 11 immediately, he has to hit the ground running and can’t afford any errors, like he regularly showcased last campaign.
| Stat per 90 (Premier League 24/25) | Emi Martinez |
| Goals conceded | 1.27 |
| Save percentage | 69.00 |
| Goals prevented | 0.03 |
| Clean sheets | 0.23 |
Villa are preparing for a clash at the Hill Dickinson Stadium against Everton, with Jack Grealish likely to start against the Villans with his new side.
The Toffees have done well in the opening weeks under David Moyes and can be dangerous going forward, but Martinez will be hopeful of keeping the home side at bay.
With that being said, there is no guarantee that he will start, but at some point, he will have to come back into the side and will have to do extremely well if fans are to love him as they once did.
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