Arsenal fans on Twitter have defended Emiliano Martinez for his comments about taking a ‘step up’ after moving to Aston Villa.
The 28-year-old told Sky Sports that the perception that moving to Villa Park from the Emirates Stadium was a ‘step down’ for him is untrue because, in actual fact, it’s the opposite and it’s a ‘step up’ in his career.
There’s no doubt that his comments have made headlines, but the Arsenal fans have defended their former player and made it clear that he’s talking about his own career and not the club.
Martinez spent his final few months at Arsenal being their number one and helping them to the FA Cup and the Community Shield, but it was obvious that Bernd Leno was going to take over once he returned from injury.
For the majority of time Martinez spent at Arsenal, he was a back-up or a player who was shipped out on loan on a number of occasions.
So, in that sense, the player sold by Edu to Villa for £17 million [BBC Sport], is now at the strongest point of his career compared to previous years.
Arsenal’s record transfer deals
- Nicolas Pepe
£72 million
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
£56 million
- Alexandre Lacazette
£52 million
- Thomas Partey
45 million
- Mesut Ozil
£42 million
Whilst Arsenal will be expected to finish above Aston Villa this season, it will be interesting to see how Martinez now performs between the sticks compared to Leno.
One of the biggest letdowns for both teams last season was their defence, more so for Villa and it nearly plunged them back down to the Championship.
But both sets of fans will be hoping to see better outcomes as this campaign progresses because a repeat will only result in stagnation.
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