Former Arsenal star and pundit Ian Wright has criticized Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez for his World Cup penalty antics that helped Argentina win the tournament.
The former Arsenal goalkeeper played a key role in helping Argentina to their third World Cup victory by proving monumental in the final by stopping a last-minute chance from France and saving two penalties in the shootout.
However, some people may not like the way the Argentinian goalkeeper deals with kicks from the penalty spot, as the Aston Villa keeper is a master at using slightly unsportsmanlike tactics to throw off opponents. their opponents, with Ian Wright now one of them.
After Sunday’s match, Wright said on ITV via the Mirror: “It makes all the difference when you’re up against an assertive goalkeeper like Emi Martinez. Get the ball, throw it, give yourself a couple of seconds to think about where you’re going to put it.”
That seemed like praise from the former Arsenal star, but he took a U-turn by saying the goalkeeper’s antics crossed the line.
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“I look at Emi Martínez, I remember the shit with Auba [Martinez tried to put off Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang when he stepped up to take a penalty against Aston Villa in October 2021] and all those things that he was doing at Arsenal,” Wright told the Ringer’s FC podcast.
“I was thinking this guy will go to another level of s***housery if this final goes to penalties. And he did. I like Emi but what he did in the penalty shootout went over the line, with respect to sportsmanship. He crossed the line”.
Though not for everyone, many people love Martinez’s style when it comes to penalties and as long as he keeps winning them no one can say anything as it’s clearly working.
