Weeks after leaving Arsenal, it seems as though Emiliano Martinez is receiving high praise for his performances for high-flying Aston Villa this season.
Ex-striker Gabby Agbonlahor lauded the ‘outstanding’ goalkeeper on TalkSport (20/10/20 at 8:35 am) and claimed that Arsenal fans ‘won’t be happy’ that he is doing bits with Villa.
Dean Smith’s side have won all four of their Premier League matches and have conceded only two goals during this crazy goal-fest start to the campaign.
Whilst some would look towards Villa’s attack when praising their 100% start, Agbonlahor was leaning more towards their defence and how resolute they have looked this season.
“We go on about the attacking players at Aston Villa, but for me, the defence has been outstanding,” Agbonlahor told TalkSport.
“Konsa if he carries on the way he is playing, it won’t be long before he gets an England call-up because he has been outstanding. He’s got pace, aggression and even his positioning has been outstanding.
“Alongside Mings, both English centre-halves. They are both doing really well together. Matt Targett also.
“Martinez in goal has also been outstanding. I know Arsenal fans won’t be happy about that. Even with his feet, the ball goes back to him and there are no worries. He is so good on the ball. I feel Matty Cash, at right-back, he has been outstanding. For me, it’s been a defensive base that’s helped Aston Villa this season.”
It’s still early days for Villa but it has been some start to the new campaign and Martinez will be loving the fact that he decided on making the move from North London to the West Midlands.
He was clearly going to be number two at the Emirates Stadium behind Bernd Leno even though he had produced such promising performances towards the back end of their FA Cup-winning season.
But given what Leno had done for the club in the seasons before, it was pretty difficult to drop the German just like that even if it was harsh on Martinez.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
