Unai Emery: Aston Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez is no time-waster

Unai Emery has defended Emi Martinez and claimed the Villa goalkeeper does not deserve to be tagged a “time-waster”.

Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez reacts after a collision during the Premier League match at Goodison Park, Liverpool. Picture date: Saturday February 25, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story SOCCER Everton. Photo credit should read: Peter Byrne/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: EDITORIAL USE ONLY No use with unauthorised audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.

Martinez has been booked five times in 10 Premier League matches for time-wasting since Emery took charge but the boss dismissed the suggestion World Cup winner might be using underhand tactics – and claimed he has never asked any player to waste time.

Emery believes Martinez’s actions have merely been a case of savvy game management.

He explained: “He (Martinez) is taking time when he is with the ball to play – but I don’t think it is wasting time.

“I think he is taking time for the team because maybe in some matches we are struggling defensively and they are attacking and he had to reduce the danger.

“He was thinking we need to take time to control the game like we planned. But I do not think it was wasting time.”

When it was suggested those referees who had booked Martinez were clearly seeing it differently, Emery replied: “I like the referees here in England I like a lot. They are very good, professional. They are defending football and the first people who want to protect the game.”

Time-wasting is in the spotlight with football rule-makers IFAB announcing plans to increase the “effective time” being played.

Villa’s 4-0 win over Brentford in October, prior to Emery taking charge, saw the ball in play for just 43 minutes and was this week used as an example by the chairman of Fifa’s refereeing committee, Pierluigi Collini.

Emery said: “Someone spoke about the possibility of doing what they do in basketball to use all the time efficiently. But I don’t know if that’s the solution because I haven’t studied it.

“I have never told my players to waste time. Never! I want to play. I want to be honest, I want to respect football.

“Sometimes you can manage to control the game - keeping possession of the ball. That is my only focus.

“I played a lot of matches in Spain where there was tactical time-wasting, when opponents would do everything slowly to try and waste time like that. But I’ve never liked that approach.”