Former Arsenal keeper Emiliano Martinez joined the club back in 2012. Despite being at the club for such a long time, he made just 38 appearances for the first team and endured six loan spells during this period.
The Argentine resurrected his career in the latter half of the 2019/20 season. He was called into action when Bernd Leno suffered an injury against Brighton in the Premier League.
The 29-year-old made the most of this opportunity and started the next 11 games, including the triumphant win over Chelsea in the FA Cup final. However, he left the club soon after.
In his latest interview with EL PAÍS, Martinez opened up on his transfer to Arsenal and the difficulties faced in England. He was determined to succeed at his Argentine club, Independiente but when the north London club came knocking for him, it was too appealing to refuse.
The Aston Villa player revealed the decision to leave his home country was for his family as they had been struggling financially. His family and agents played a crucial part in his switch from South America to Europe, and the player says he does not regret his decision join to Arsene Wenger’s side. Speaking to EL PAÍS, the Argentine said:
“Arsenal came to look for me and Pepe Santoro [his coach in Independiente’s youth team] told me that the train only passes once in a lifetime. My family and my agents thought the same.”
“So, the decision was more for them [family] than anything else. I didn’t want to go. I did not regret it, but I wanted to play in Independiente. For a while I thought: ‘If I stayed, in two years I will make my debut [with the first team]’.”
Martinez says it was not all smooth sailing during his initial years at Arsenal. He struggled with the foreign language, but he overcame that language barrier within a year. Since he could not break into the first-team squad, he was sent out on loan multiple times, and not all of those loan spells were productive.
On his time at the English capital, the South American said:
“I did not know the language. And Wenger told me that the goalkeeper had to speak in English. When something gets into my head, I do it. In a year I learned to speak English and I even got my driver’s license.”
“I went from loan to loan, went through six different loans before I was established. I went through Spain and the Championship. Very good experiences in the second division in England, but very bad in Getafe. It was the lowest point of my career.”
Arsenal Fever View:
The journey of Martinez is surely an inspirational one. Sitting on the bench for Arsenal to winning the Copa America with Argentina in a span of one year is nothing short of extraordinary. Some Arsenal fans have been skeptical about the club’s decision to sell him last summer, but it does seem to benefit both the parties involved.
The Gunners received a fee in the region of £20million for a player they bought for peanuts. The South American has gone on to elevate his game exponentially since joining the Villans.
The club have secured the services of a young and exciting goalkeeper in Aaron Ramsdale. He should be determined to follow the footsteps of Martinez and push for a regular spot between the sticks for the Gunners.
Read More: Arsenal report card: 2021/22 summer transfer window
