Arsenal’s goalkeeping situation had been a concern for many a season but now they’ve got a headache of a different kind.
Emi Martinez has been patient but has grabbed the chance afforded to him by Bernd Leno’s injury.
Gunners legend Ian Wright has had his say on the situation, on the Kelly and Wrighty Show, as per the Mirror: “Everybody spoke about Emi but I didn’t realise how good he was.
“He’s commanding, he makes great saves, he’s good on the ground. He’s probably better than Bernd Leno. I don’t want Bernd to go but what I’m saying about [Martinez] is we’ve got to be very careful with him.”
The intended hierarchy at the start of the season was clear; Leno is the £19 million (BBC) top man, Martinez the £20k-a-week (Spotrac) understudy.
One thing to note is the mental side of the game; can Martinez produce under the pressure of being long-term number one, when the fans are back in? Perhaps this sterile version of football isn’t the best arena in which to make big decisions, but Martinez has been impressive.
As per WhoScored, Martinez makes more saves per game, stopping 0.4 more in his own area.
That said, Leno’s short passing is more accurate and that may weigh into the thinking of Mikel Arteta, who wants to play out from the back.
Ulimately, Martinez is inspiring confidence from fans and players alike which has seldom been generated by Leno or any other Gunners stopper since Jens Lehmann.
The understudy could become the main man next term. Juggling two goalkeepers approaching their prime won’t be easy for Arteta, but it’s a good problem to have.
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