Aston Villa’s president of football operations Monchi has waxed lyrical about one player who thinks is the ‘best in the world’ in his position.
Unai Emery has assembled a squad at Aston Villa capable of competing against Europe’s best.
Villa won their first three Champions League games – including a 1-0 triumph over Bayern Munich – before losing 1-0 to Club Brugge.
While performing brilliantly on the biggest stage at club level, several first-team stars were able to shine, including super sub-Jhon Duran, midfield maestro Youri Tielemans and talisman Ollie Watkins.
However, none of the above have been labelled as the ‘best in the world’ in their position, although one Villa player has.
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Monchi thinks Emi Martinez is the ‘best in the world’
Since arriving from Arsenal for £17m in the summer of 2020, goalkeeper Emi Martinez has gone from strength to strength, and it’s been exceptional to watch.
The Argentine helped Villa qualify for the Champions League last term as his shot-stopping reached a new level and he’s also won the World Cup and Copa America with Argentina.
The 32-year-old has received immense praise for his rise to the summit of world football, as Alan Smith labelled Martinez as ‘world-class’ after his performance against Ipswich.
Martinez has also been dubbed one of the world’s best by Gary Lineker, and that is a verdict shared by Monchi, who has been left blown away by what he brings on and off the pitch.
“He is an important part of the Aston Villa brand, it shows the growth of this club,” Monchi said via Sport Witness.
“Having the best goalkeeper in the world, totally loyal and involved with the day-to-day running of the club. Emi is more than our goalkeeper, he is a reference in the dressing room, the club, for our fans, within the Premier League…
“He is one of the pillars on which we want to continue growing, he represents what we want to transmit to society, to compete to the maximum for everything that is presented to us.”
“He is a reference, one of the team captains and an example. In recent years he won the world championship, the Copa America, became the best goalkeeper in the world and continues with the daily motivation of wanting to be the best individually and as a team member.
“He is a perfect mirror, he did not rest on his laurels, he wants to improve day by day and push the team to grow. He is an easy person to deal with, approachable, who provides solutions within a discussion.”
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Emi Martinez Aston Villa stats
It’s hard to disagree with the above praise from Monchi, as Martinez lifted the Yashin Trophy for the second year running, crowning him the world’s best goalkeeper.
| Emi Martinez Aston Villa stats | 174 matches played | 213 goals conceded | 58 clean sheets |
The World Cup winner has been almost ever-present since joining the club four years ago, the above statistics paint the picture of a keeper who has mastered his craft.
This season, Martinez has played 15 times in all competitions while letting in 18 goals and keeping just four clean sheets.
Martinez was previously frustrated with the amount of clean sheets he’s kept in 2024/25, and while that isn’t solely on him, he’ll hope that statistic improves very soon.
