PREMIER LEAGUE
How Emiliano ‘Dibu’ Martínez plans to convince Lionel Messi to join Aston Villa in the Premier League
The Paris Saint-Germain star has been linked with a return to Barcelona but Argentina teammate Martínez has other ideas.
The future of Paris Saint-Germain player Lionel Messi is still up in the air, with the world of soccer left in suspense as to where he will play next season. Despite a successful stint in Paris, where he is on the brink of winning Ligue 1 for a second successive year, he appears unlikely to continue in France, while a return to Barcelona and moves to MLS and Saudi Arabia have also been mooted, rather than confirmed.
Roasts and a wage cut
In the midst of the uncertainty, Argentina teammate and friend Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez has spoken of his desire to see Messi join him in the Premier League at Aston Villa. In an interview with ESPN, the goalkeeper talked of his admiration for his international captain and spoke of his plan to tempt him to England.
“Sine the PSG fans are always whistling him, I would tell Messi to come to Aston Villa. We would treat him well there. I would cook a roasts for him every weekend and I would ever take a wage cut if I could. Whatever he wants as long as he has a good time”, said Martínez, presumably tongue-in-cheek.
Martínez reflects on Argentina’s World Cup win
‘Dibu’ was one of his nation’s star performers at the World Cup and has continued his fine form since returning to Birmingham from Qatar. Under former Arsenal and Sevilla manager Unai Emery, Villa have enjoyed a superb end to the season and could qualify for Europe next season. Martínez also reflected on Argentina’s World Cup final victory, including a crucial late save he made from France Randal Kolo Muani.
“I’ll never have another save like that one. Maybe I’ve made a better one but that one will stay with me forever. Because of when it was in the game, it was a tense period for us, we were up against it”, the goalkeeper explained. “I could feel how tense the central defender were feeling after they equalised. The team was really hurting. What pleases me most is how calm I managed to stay when he struck the ball. I didn’t move to the side or back. I stood tall and stayed where I had to stay. I could make 200 better stops but that’s going to be the best save I make in my life.