Aston Villa's Emi Martinez facing formal complaint over Kylian Mbappe 'taunting'
Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez is the subject of a formal complaint from the French FA for his taunting of Kylian Mbappe following the World Cup final.
French FA president Noel Le Graet believes the Argentina hero went “too far” in repeatedly taking aim at Mbappe after helping his nation to glory at Qatar 2022.
Martinez, who saved Kingsley Coman’s penalty as Argentina won a shoot-out 4-2 when last Sunday’s final had finished in a thrilling 3-3 draw after extra time, first called for a “moment’s silence” for Mbappe during dressing room celebrations.
He then carried round a doll with the Paris Saint-Germain striker's face tied to it while on a public parade back in Argentina.
Mbappe became the first player since Geoff Hurst to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final, albeit ultimately in a losing effort.
Le Graet confirmed he has written to his Argentine counterpart, Claudio Tapia, to complain about Martinez’s behaviour.
"I wrote to my counterpart from the Argentine Federation," he told Ouest-France. "I find these excesses abnormal, in the context of a sports competition, and I find it difficult to understand.
"This is going too far. Mbappé's behaviour has been exemplary."
The French sports minister has also suggested they might make a formal complaint.
"I am not ruling out discussing this with my counterpart," Amelie Oudea-Castera told RTL Radio. "I find all of this quite pitiful.”
Martinez has been criticised in some quarters for the mind games deployed during shoot-out wins over the Netherlands in the quarter-final and France.
After saving from Coman, the Villa keeper threw the ball away from the next French taker, Aurelien Tchouameni, who subsequently put his penalty wide.
