Argentine goalkeeper Emi Martinez has received a lot of attention since the World Cup final on Sunday. After all, she managed to help the South American nation to its third tournament title. However, most of the headlines about Martinez are now negative.
The 30-year-old goalkeeper leered at his Gold Glove trophy after the win over France. Martínez won the prize for the best goalkeeper of the tournament. The organizers on stage were not impressed by the move. Martínez then issued a ‘moment of silence’ for France star Kylian Mbappé in the dressing room celebrations.
Martínez’s antics, especially directed at Mbappé, would not stop there. The goalkeeper was seen holding a doll with a photo of Mbappé’s face attached to his head during the Argentina bus parade in Buenos Aires this week.
Mbappé hit 4 shots past Martínez in Final
Oddly enough, Mbappé set Martínez on fire during the final match of the World Cup. The French star scored a hat-trick in the match and later converted his penalty in the shootout. Martinez’s antics have not gone down well in the soccer world, especially in France.
French FA president Noel Le Graet has officially written a letter to complain about Martinez. “I wrote to my counterpart from the Argentine Federation,” Le Graet told the French outlet Ouest-France. “These excesses seem abnormal to me, in the context of a sports competition, and I find them difficult to understand.”
“This is going too far. Mbappé’s behavior has been exemplary”.
The war of words began before the World Cup
The feud between Martínez and Mbappé apparently started before the World Cup started. Mbappe previously stated that European teams have an advantage in the tournament due to better preparation. Martinez did not care much for the comment.
“He doesn’t know enough about football. He never played in South America,” Martínez said. “When you don’t have this experience, it may be better not to talk about it. But it doesn’t matter. We are a great team, recognized as such”.
It remains to be seen how Argentina will respond to the official complaints from the French FA.
Photo Credit: IMAGO/PA Images
