Arsenal are "progressing" in talks to sign Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia and are "close" to an agreement on personal terms, according to reports.
Who will Arsenal sign this summer?
The north Londoners have their eyes on multiple additions this summer as they look to strengthen Mikel Arteta's ranks and challenge again for next season's Premier League title.
Central midfield is the position to really look out for, as a wide variety of sources claim they're stepping up their pursuit of West Ham star Declan Rice and have already had bids rejected for the England international.
They're apparently "serious" about signing Rice and remain confident of doing a deal, having already agreed personal terms, while the likes of Man City star Ilkay Gundogan and Lavia are also being repeatedly linked.
Further forward and in defence, Gunners supporters could see the likes of Kai Havertz join from Chelsea with talks advancing and terms also agreed there, and Ajax defender Jurrien Timber is at the centre of real interest.
Following Southampton's relegation from the top flight, Lavia is a player who could well be on the move, as he attracts interest from Arteta, Chelsea, Man United and Liverpool (The Independent).
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Arsenal have been in talks for the 19-year-old, as reported elsewhere, but Football Insider have a really promising update on their efforts to sign him.
According to their information, Arsenal are "progressing" in negotiations for Lavia, with personal terms "close to agreement". This is part of a potential quadruple spending spree and Arteta could see as much as £300 million spent in total this summer.
As well as Lavia, it is believed Rice, Havertz and Timber are all still in ongoing discussions to make a move to the Emirates Stadium.
How has Romeo Lavia done at Southampton?
Having signed for the Saints last year on a deal from Man City, Pep Guardiola has since been very impressed with his efforts at St. Mary's.
Speaking to City's official website, Guardiola held special praise for the Belgium international, who has gone on to make 29 league appearances.
“I am really impressed with what Romeo has done and is doing,” said the City boss.
“We had, and we have, an incredible opinion about him. We thought to keep him, but maybe he would not (get) enough minutes like he has in Southampton.
“(It’s a) good experience to go to the Premier League and play at this early age. So important.”
Lavia also averaged a higher pass accuracy (86.4%) than any Southampton player in the Premier League last campaign.
There are host of talented teens looking to follow in the footsteps of Alejandro Garnacho and Evan Ferguson from last season
One of the joys of any Premier League season is when young players breakout and become household names almost overnight. Fans are always energised when a teenager, whether they are homegrown or otherwise, makes an impact on the first team, and heading into the 2023-24 campaign, there are plenty of talents who look set to emerge.
When GOAL produced this list ahead of the 2022-23 season, we predicted the likes of Alejandro Garnacho, Evan Ferguson, Romeo Lavia, Levi Colwill, Stefan Bajcetic and Julio Enciso would make their mark over the next nine months, so who do we believe will be able to do something similar this time around?
With the proviso that only players born in or after 2004 are eligible, and that players must have 15 or fewer Premier League appearances under their belt, here's the 2023-24 list of teenage talents who could breakthrough in the English top flight:
Getty ImagesFacundo Buonanotte (Brighton)
The most experienced player on this list in terms of Premier League appearances, Facundo Buonanotte played 13 times in the top-flight for Brighton last season, and even got himself on the scoresheet during a defeat at Nottingham Forest.
The Seagulls paid around £6 million to bring the 18-year-old to the south coast from Argentine side Rosario Central in January, and it is hoped he will follow in the footsteps of Ferguson and Enciso in making an impact under Roberto De Zerbi.
An attacking midfielder who can play further forward, he has been compared to Alexis Mac Allister in the past, and could yet end up being his compatriot's long-term replacement in the Brighton line up.
Youssef Chermiti is a new arrival into the Premier League having moved to Everton in the days leading up to the new campaign. The Toffees have agreed to pay an initial £13m for the 19-year-old, who arrives from Sporting CP.
A physically imposing striker with a touch that belies his size, Chermiti scored three goals in the Primeira Liga last season, and arrives into Sean Dyche's squad to provide back-up for Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Given the England striker's injury issues, though, there is a good chance that Chermiti will get plenty of opportunities to impress over the course of the season.
Getty ImagesBobby Clark (Liverpool)
The son of former Newcastle midfielder Lee Clark, Bobby Clark joined Liverpool from the Magpies in 2021 and has made excellent progress since arriving on Merseyside. He made his first-team debut in August 2022, but his cameo in the 9-0 win over Bournemouth remains the 18-year-old's only Premier League appearance to date.
An energetic central midfielder, Clark has been given opportunities to impress during pre-season by Jurgen Klopp, and as the Reds continue to redevelop their midfield, Clark will be hopeful of following Bajcetic into the team over the course of the season.
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Getty ImagesAmario Cozier-Duberry (Arsenal)
One of the stars of Arsenal's run to the FA Youth Cup final last season, Cozier-Duberry's displays certainly caught Mikel Arteta's eye, who included the teenager in his matchday squad on six occasions over the course of the campaign.
Cozier-Duberry is yet to make his first-team bow, but the 18-year-old's tricky wing play has earned comparisons to Bukayo Saka, and there is some hope that he can become the England star's primary back-up over the next couple of years.
It’s safe to say Anthony Taylor has made a few enemies with his referee performance in last night’s Europa League final.
What’s the latest on Anthony Taylor and Jose Mourinho?
Meeting at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Sevilla played Roma in a scrappy encounter which ended 1-1 after 90 minutes before eventually being settled on penalties after a goalless extra time.
Two fine saves in the shootout from Yassine Bono, allowed Gonzalo Montiel the opportunity to win the tournament for Sevilla.
He actually missed the penalty but referee Taylor was advised by the VAR of an encroachment, and so the Argentine – who also netted the decisive penalty in the World Cup final – scored here at the second attempt to bring the trophy back to Spain yet again.
Throughout the game, however, much of the focus was on the officiating of the Premier League official as he handed out 13 yellow cards – a record for a European final.
Both teams had cause to be upset with the Englishman though. First of all, he failed to spot a possible foul on Ivan Rakitic shortly before Paulo Dybala’s opener.
Fans were furious right after that incident, taking to Twitter to make their feelings known.
Sadly for Taylor, things didn’t get any easier from there as he failed to give some big calls in Roma’s favour either.
Most notably, he failed to award the Serie A side a penalty for this potential handball inside the box.
After the defeat, Jose Mourinho – who had been booked during the game – seemed absolutely enraged with the referee’s display.
Speaking to the press (via Sky Sports), he publically questioned Taylor’s performance saying:
“It was an intense, vibrant game with a referee who seemed Spanish.
“It was yellow, yellow, yellow all the time.”
What’s more, the 60-year-old – who had just lost a European final for the first time in his career – was then spotted in the car park confronting the English official.
It’s certainly a shameful way to take defeat, even if the referee wasn’t at his best on the day. But then again, that’s just classic Mourinho.
Leeds United could struggle to sign Rangers winger Ryan Kent if they are relegated to the Championship ahead of next season, according to journalist Dean Jones.
Is Kent leaving Rangers this summer?
The Whites are on the verge of going down from the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, following three years back in the top flight. Destiny is out of their hands, with Everton knowing that victory over Bournemouth at Goodison Park will send both Leeds and Leicester City to the Championship, as well as Southampton.
In truth, it would take something fairly special for the Whites to remain in the division at this point, as they look to avoid the drop in dramatic circumstances for a second year in a row.
Once the summer transfer window arrives, much of the focus will be on new signings, although the calibre of players they are able to bring in could be dependent on which league they are playing in in 2023/24. One individual who has been linked with a move to Elland Road is Kent, who could leave Rangers at the end of the campaign.
The £18,000-a-week winger's current deal expires this summer, and it doesn't look as though he will sign an extension at Ibrox.
rangers-ryan-kent-champions-league-leeds-transfer
Could Leeds miss out on Kent move?
Speaking to Give Me Sport, transfer expert Jones claimed that Leeds' potential move for Kent could be scuppered if they go down this weekend:
"I don't know that Kent would be willing to play in the Championship. I don't think that's what his vision is going to be at this stage, so we'll have to wait and see exactly how the two align."
In fairness, the lure of the Premier League will be great for Kent this summer, so the thought of suddenly representing Leeds in the Championship is unlikely to appeal to him.
This is someone who played in the Europa League final for Rangers last season, and he has racked up 90 goal contributions (33 goals and 57 assists) in 218 appearances for the Scottish Premiership giants. His attacking quality could be a real asset for the Whites if he did decide to join – Steven Gerrard once called him "sensational" – but it would be hard to begrudge him a move elsewhere if a top-flight club came calling.
It highlights just how big Sunday's action is for the Leeds, with a miracle survival act proving to be so huge when it comes to signings in the summer window.
Tottenham Hotspur have listed South Korea coach Jurgen Klinsmann as a "surprise" new manager candidate, according to reports.
Who could Spurs appoint as manager?
The Lilywhites are still on the search for a new manager after parting ways with Antonio Conte last month as interim boss Cristian Stellini attempts to seal a top four Premier League finish.
Spurs' recent 3-2 humbling at home to Bournemouth made for grim viewing as Stellini suffered a blow in his pursuit of Champions League qualification, and it's safe to say the mood around north London appears sour right now.
Daniel Levy quite simply needs to get their next managerial appointment spot on after Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Conte ultimately didn't work out. Conte and Mourinho in particular, both serial winners with previous clubs, couldn't quite find the winning formula at Tottenham with supporters turning on owners ENIC.
Mauricio Pochettino, Luis Enrique, Julian Nagelsmann and even Zinedine Zidane stand out as the big name free agents to have been linked with a move to N17.
Closer to home, British managerial duo Brendan Rodgers and Graham Potter are also contenders going by recent reports, but it appears a shock name has now entered contention. Indeed, Monday's edition of Kicker (via Get Football News Germany) claims Klinsmann has emerged as a 'surprise' Spurs manager candidate.
The 58-year-old only took charge of South Korea in February, yet the former Spurs star is now being considered by Levy. He was also in attendance to watch Tottenham's defeat to Bournemouth at the weekend, where he was keeping a watchful eye on Son Heung-min.
Should Tottenham move for Klinsmann?
There is little denying the experience he possesses at international level, having coached on that front since 2004 and even taking the helm for Germany's host 2006 World Cup campaign where they reached the semi-finals. Klinsmann also managed the USA national team for five years between 2011 and 2016, yet one cavaet to his possible appointment could be his lack of work at club level.
The tactician has just one spell at Hertha Berlin, where he took charge for just 10 games in the 2019/2020 season, under his belt which could count against him in Levy's thinking.
Klinsmann is adored by the Spurs faithful and has spoken before about the prospect of managing his old club, yet there are both potential incentives and reasons not to appoint him.
We believe he should remain an outside contender for now, especially with the likes of Enrique and Pochettino available for hire.
The attention was on Durham’s Scott Borthwick but he ran himself out for 2 and Steven Patterson then drove home Yorkshire’s advantage with 6 for 56
David Hopps at Chester-le-Street20-Jun-2016 ScorecardSteven Patterson recorded career-best figures•Getty Images
At a time when a potential home Test debut for Scott Borthwick against Pakistan has been widely floated, it is perhaps inevitable that the Durham wicket that gained most attention was the one where Steven Patterson just vaguely stood there at the end of his run and happened to get in the way.Borthwick, who began the match with a Championship average top side of 80, has had a prolific season, in contrast to the current incumbent as England’s No. 3, Nick Compton, who has mustered 151 runs at 16.77 in a troubled season for both Middlesex and England.Patterson, one of the stingier bowlers around, was probably silently berating himself for allowing Borthwick something as self-indulgent as a front-foot drive when the ball was parried at mid-off by the diving Andrew Gale. Borthwick first held the pose – as if displaying his England credentials for a dozing photographer – then sensed a single, aware that Gale is carrying a few niggles and is a bit exposed in the field these days.But there was a Patterson roundabout to negotiate and Borthwick was still a foot short of the crease, sliding in on his knees, when Gale’s direct hit struck the stumps. The physio had to come on to give Gale attention, but it was only a graze and he was safe in the knowledge that he had pronounced he has not become an automatic single just yet.That was England affairs done and dusted, Borthwick left to curse a scorecard showing two runs in six balls. Attention turned to the Championship, the arena in which, day in day out, Patterson proves his worth. This time, with career-best figures of 6 for 56 to celebrate, and Durham dismissed for 172, he might get a share of that headline.Chris Rushworth, who two seasons ago took nine wickets in an innings, did his best to upstage Patterson late on, serving up a draught of local defiance. Shaven pate shimmering in rare evening sunshine, he claimed all four Yorkshire wickets to fall, including Alex Lees for 71 and Patterson, loping out as nightwatchman, for a second-ball duck, to leave Gale and Gary Ballance playing charily for the close.With the bat, Jack Burnham stuck it out, his 49 from 134 balls representing a mature contribution in a decent first full season, showing the sort of resilience that is expected from this Durham side, no matter how inexperienced. He drove pleasantly at times, but he never drove Patterson, wisely settling for suspicious pushes into the leg side.”Patto does what Patto does,” his coach, Jason Gillespie, is fond of saying. He does not so much hit a length as beat it into submission at speeds just above the motorway speed limit, but not quite fast enough to make the camera flash. But when he hits the seam he can change lane as sharply as the best of them. On a nibbly Chester-le-Street seamer, he was a permanent irritation: as nagging as a wasp in the kitchen, the thing you can’t quite remember, the noise in the car you can’t quite place.Every team needs a Patto, someone to throw the ball to when the pressure is on, and for Yorkshire the pressure was at maximum. They have four senior pace bowlers absent – Jack Brooks, Ryan Sidebottom, David Willey and Liam Plunkett (the latter with England) – their hugely promising fast bowler, Matt Fisher, is plagued by hamstring trouble, and England have also called up the legspin of Adil Rashid.Add Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root, and Yorkshire had eight missing in all. Two seamers were on Yorkshire Championship debut, Ben Coad and Josh Shaw, although Shaw had at least had some experience at Gloucestershire, where he has been called back from an intended season’s loan.With one point separating Lancashire, Durham and Yorkshire at the top of Division One, the table is a triumph for the north, although this being the north, the did curb its regional pride with the observation that Lancashire are in a false position.Durham were reasonably placed at 74 for 2 when Patterson struck for the first time with his second ball after lunch, having Mark Stoneman lbw, pushing well forward. Then came a run of 3 for 8 in 18 balls: Michael Richardson edged a brute of a ball which spat off a length; Paul Collingwood, who seemed intent on breaking him early, managed one cover drive but then mistimed a wide one to backward point; and Ryan Pringle’s off stump was removed as he groped forward.Coad and Shaw both acquitted themselves well, and Tim Bresnan produced a decent delivery of his own to have Usman Arshad caught at the wicket, but Gale ran Patterson for 14 overs in all, a spell broken by lunch, his value never more apparent. A brief second spell went unrewarded before Gale turned to him again after tea and he ended the innings courtesy of two off-side catches. A bowler just doing his job, and doing it well.
ScorecardShaun Marsh scored a 119-ball 109 to go with his first-innings 95•Getty Images
A four-wicket haul from Joel Paris gave Western Australia a thrilling 24-run win over Queensland, after centuries from Shaun Marsh and Michael Klinger had powered their charge to a third-innings declaration. Paris had replaced Nathan Coulter-Nile in the Western Australia side on the third day of the match.Chasing 282, Queensland were well on course thanks to Charlie Hemphrey, who added 77 with Marnus Labuschagne (52, 49b, 6×4, 1×6) for the second wicket and 97 with Chris Lynn (44, 68b, 8×4) for the third to take the score to 2 for 182. But wickets fell steadily thereafter, as Queensland slipped to 7 for 228, before Hemphrey and Mark Steketee steadied the chase with a 28-run eighth-wicket stand. With Queensland needing 26 with three wickets in hand, Michael Hogan struck, bowling Hemphrey for 102 (144b, 16×4). The end came in the very next over, as Paris broke through the defences of No. 10 Mitchell Swepson and No. 11 Peter George off successive deliveries.Western Australia began the day 1 for 79 in their second innings, their lead 69. They lost Cameron Bancroft in the second over of the day, for 45 (95b, 5×4) before Marsh and Klinger took over, adding 149 off 116 balls for the third wicket. Jack Wildermuth then dismissed Marsh for 109 (119b, 11×4, 4×6) and took the wickets of Ashton Agar and Ashton Turner soon after. Western Australia declared on 5 for 291, with Klinger unbeaten on 102 off 86 balls (10×4, 4×6).
Southampton have been through the trenches over the past year, slipping slowly but surely from their once steady position in the Premier League and not facing a desperate fight to avoid relegation, with the business end of the campaign looking ominous indeed.
Indeed, the outfit languish at the nadir of their current stay in the top-flight, 19th in the division after 25 matches, albeit with two victories from the past three matches.
Current boss Ruben Selles is the third to take to the Southampton dugout this season alone, with Nathan Jones receiving the boot after losing seven of his eight Premier League matches in charge.
That spell, of course, came after long-term and respected boss Ralph Hasenhuttl was dismissed from his duties following a discernible downward trend and boiling temperatures between the Austrian and the owners, Sport Republic – who assumed control one year ago.
With the turbulence that Saints is beset with threatening to spiral the club from their position among the top outfits in the country, a rueful gaze will undoubtedly be cast back to recent misfortunes, with one failed deal on the transfer front exuding a potent sense of pathos.
Did Southampton nearly sign Gakpo?
Cody Gakpo was of interest to Southampton last summer, with The Telegraph reporting that the outfit had two summer bids rejected for the phenom, the second totalling roughly £21.5m.
It’s fair to say Gakpo is having something of a prolific season for club and country.
The 23-year-old has scored four goals from 12 outings for Liverpool, with a remarkable return of 13 strikes and 17 assists for PSV Eindhoven in the first half of the term, preceding his £35m-£45m transfer to Anfield.
He has started to emerge as a fierce offensive force, with Times journalist Hamzah Khalique-Loonat even lauding him as “tall, fleet-footed and dangerous.”
As per FBref, Gakpo ranks among the best 9% of forwards in Europe’s top five leagues for goals and the top 7% for assists per 90, illustrating a sharpness to his cutting edge that has been unforeseen in Southampton for some time, and it could have even saved Hasenhuttl’s job.
With St. Mary’s Stadium falling quickly into the lower third of the Premier League, Hasenhuttl’s reign seemed to be drawing to an inevitable close, especially given the relationship between the manager and owners was wearing thin after a short time together.
Given the dynamic capabilities of Gakpo, and the impact he could have made on the collective efforts of the team’s attack, it is a miserable thought for Southampton fans when mulling over what could have been.
Considering Gakpo’s performances in the Netherlands and his emphatic introduction to the global stage with his country at the World Cup, the powers that be at Saints must be veritably kicking themselves for blundering so badly.
And with the machine now starting to churn at Liverpool, the south coast is offered a poignant reminder of what could have been.
Here we go again. How irresponsible can Virender Sehwag get? One can understand his liberal swishing of the bat out in the middle, but look what he’s done now. He actually had the audacity to publicly go on record and say that there’s too much cricket and that players “need a break” to guard against burn-out. Worst still, he was cheeky enough to say that Sourav Ganguly was the best captain he has played under and added that (take a deep breath) “we miss him”.Obviously, none of this would sit well with the Indian board, who promptly issued a warning. One wonders how Niranjan Shah, the board secretary, controlled a chuckle when he read out this statement: “As a player you cannot give your opinion on any other player.” Shah, probably realising his folly a day later, attempted a cover-up operation: “It was not a warning, just our advice to him. There is no question of taking action against Sehwag. The matter is closed.”But, more pertinently, why was it an issue in the first place? Sehwag isn’t the first to be pulled up for opening his mouth. The two Singhs – Harbhajan and Yuvraj – have been gagged earlier and Greg Chappell has faced the music as well, except that his comments, unlike the other three, were against Ganguly. So it’s 3-1 at the moment, but the refereeing has been quite hopeless.Around a month back, at the pre-match press conference before the sixth one-dayer against England at Jamshedpur, Sehwag was asked about Ganguly. His response was guarded, more an effort to pass the question rather than create a stir: “… there’s no question of looking back … We have already forgotten that chapter.” No warning then, no yellow card, no nothing.Around two weeks back, Sachin Tendulkar was asked, again in a press conference, about too much cricket. One of his responses: “I have been happy with my schedule. It is important to physically and mentally recharge yourself after every series. One must make sure there is a break after matches and series.” Tendulkar expresses his opinion. No hassles. Sehwag expresses his opinion. Warned. Inference: open your mouth but just don’t say what the board doesn’t want to hear.And what if you are asked about your former captain? He might have been your greatest backer, he might have revitalised your career, and he might be your hero, but it’s almost anathema to take his name, more so if you are praising him. If the Indian board has its way, a few years down the line you may watch this version of a player interview.Interviewer: Who have been the key players in India becoming the best team in the world?
Player: Sorry, I am not in a position to answer that.I: Tell us about the World Cup final. What a superb innings from your captain …
P: I wish I could talk about that innings. But I can’t publicly comment on other players.I: Do you still have fond memories of your debut?
P: Great moment. I need to thank one man for having faith in me during that time. I am sure you know who I am talking about. That’s all I can say.I: A thousand Twenty20 games in the last year. Isn’t it too much?
P: That is for the board to comment.
Having endured a patchy start to the new Premier League season, despite remaining unbeaten, it finally seems like Arsenal are clicking into gear and recapturing the rhythm that saw them come so close to immortality last year.
With standout victories over Manchester United and PSV Eindhoven, Mikel Arteta's men have laid a fine foundation for success across the board, with the Spaniard likely boasting grand ambitions of challenging on all fronts.
However, much of the media interest surrounding the current campaign, Kai Havertz's questionable performances aside, has been aimed at the goalkeeping position.
With Aaron Ramsdale having started the term as no.1, given the England international's impressive and ever-improving form since joining, the loan acquisition of David Raya drew questions.
The Spaniard is a fine shot-stopper who boasts exemplary ball-playing skills, but many wondered what the need to replace their current keeper was when the 25-year-old had largely impressed.
However, when the opportunity arose the Brentford loanee certainly took it, with it now widely recognised that he will maintain his starting spot.
Despite all the interest and debate such a saga has whipped up, it could be argued that back in 2020, Arteta actually sold a man who outperforms both of them.
Who has Mikel Arteta sold whilst at Arsenal?
Upon being appointed following the troublesome tenure of Unai Emery, there was plenty of work for the young inexperienced coach to undergo before he could take the Gunners back to the top.
After all, he had inherited a hugely bloated wage bill consisting of ageing luxury stars, many of whom were unlikely to stick around and star for the long-term project that was being crafted.
As such, the 41-year-old was cut-throat, with stars such as Mesut Ozil, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette all falling foul of the new regime. The former two even saw their contracts terminated in an effort to speed up their exit and free up significant wages to spend on a brighter future.
However, some departures did get lost in the mass exodus, with Pep Guardiola's ex-assistant perhaps a little too eager to completely revamp the squad.
Stars such as Matteo Guendouzi and Bernd Leno have gone on to enjoy fine stints since departing the Emirates, but few have enjoyed a rise to prominence like Emiliano Martinez, who joined Aston Villa in 2020.
After deputising well for the injured German goalkeeper, it became clear that despite his blistering form, the Argentine would not be handed a long-term show of faith. So, in a deal that has since become legendary for the international repercussions it held, the 31-year-old would seek greener pastures.
Having since made 119 appearances for the Midlands outfit, as an ever-present stalwart who has helped them in good times and bad, he is now reaping the rewards of having a fine outfit in front of him, who even charged to a European spot last season.
However, the true outstanding contribution of the shot-stopper's career thus far has come with his national team, more specifically during the 2022 World Cup.
Selected as Argentina's undisputed number one by Lionel Scaloni, the 6 foot 5 titan would play every minute of every game as they charged through the tournament. Brushing aside a shock defeat to Saudi Arabia, they would ease past Poland and Mexico before crushing Australian dreams with a narrow round of 16 victory.
Next came the Netherlands, who they defeated on penalties as Martinez starred, before an emphatic 3-0 win over Croatia cemented their spot in the final.
Whilst Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe stole the show offensively, the 32-cap superstar would make the decisive intervention, producing a phenomenal late save to deny Randal Kolo Muani in extra time before making two penalty saves to win his country the ultimate prize.
Soccer Football – FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 – Final – Argentina v France – Lusail Stadium, Lusail, Qatar – December 18, 2022 Best Young Player winner Argentina’s Enzo Fernandez, Golden Ball winner Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Golden Glove winner Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez pose with the trophies REUTERS/Carl Recine
Journalist Thierry Nyann would seek to highlight his contribution, which saw him win the Golden Glove award and later the award for Best Goalkeeper in the World: "Big shouts to Emiliano Martinez — Argentina wouldn’t have won the World Cup without him. A World Class Goalkeeper".
To think, Arteta was willing to sanction his exit for what now seems like a nominal fee.
How much did Aston Villa sign Emi Martinez for?
Whilst few could possibly have foreseen the glistening future Martinez would enjoy, there were signs that Arsenal had a truly special keeper on their hands.
After all, his work during that spell in the first team was exceptional, managing a 7.21 average rating as he recorded 3.8 saves per game, via Sofascore.
Therefore, the £17m spent marked a relatively risk-free signing for the Villans, who had secured a fine first-choice goalkeeper for the foreseeable future.
How much was Emi Martinez worth at Arsenal?
Having spent eight years at the north London club, his was a stint largely spent in the shadows, patiently awaiting a moment to shine.
As such, he would record just 38 appearances, the bulk of which came in cup competitions, and in that period before his exit.
€40.7m (£35.1m)
2023
Aston Villa
€21.4m (£18.5m)
2022
Aston Villa
€6.9m (£5.9m)
2021
Aston Villa
€0.7m (£0.6m)
2020
Arsenal
€0.5m (£0.4m)
2019
Arsenal
FootballTransfers, recognising his diminutive status, would therefore only value Villa's number one at €3.8m (£3.2m), which marked the pinnacle during that period at the Emirates. Unsurprisingly, this was a figure that would skyrocket in the following years.
How much was Emi Martinez worth at Aston Villa?
Although his value has since decreased slightly now, with the hype surrounding those World Cup performances understandably inflating such a number, it still remains at a level where Arteta will hold much regret regarding the departure.
Emiliano Martinez
After all, as recently as February was the Argentine worth a lofty €40.7m (£35.1m), with that having now dropped to a still admirable €30.9m (£26.7m).
When taking the former figure, since leaving the Gunners Martinez has actually seen a 105% increase when comparing that valuation with the fee first paid.
Why is Emi Martinez worth that much?
That value is not a figure solely upheld by his international displays though, as despite Villa's patchy start to the Premier League season, Martinez has starred.
The former Reading star is averaging an admirable 7.28 average rating this league term, making him the seventh-best-performing goalkeeper in the division, buoyed by his 3.4 saves per game and 84% pass accuracy, via Sofascore.
For comparison, Raya and Ramsdale have only managed 7.15 and 6.63 average ratings respectively, thus emphasising the earlier point. Arteta may have been vindicated in the sales of Ozil and Aubameyang, but he got it all wrong with Martinez.