Aston Villa star happy to take the heat again in hunt for Champions League glory

The goalkeeper is preparing a hot reception when Unai Emery’s team take on Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. 

Martinez is an unpopular figure in France after his antics when helping Argentina to glory in the 2022 World Cup final and then taunting striker Kylian Mbappe in the aftermath.

The 32-year-old was then again the pantomime villain when leading Villa to shoot-out glory over Lille in last season’s Conference League.

And it is again a role Martinez is ready to accept, with the keeper believing the abuse directed toward him will help ease the pressure on his Villa team-mates.

“It’s going to be heated," he told Argentina outlet TyC Sports. "I’ve already received messages and everything. We’re tough at home, but we struggle a bit more away from home. It’s a knockout, and anything can happen.

"The good thing is that my team will have less pressure because people will insult me. I have it completely under control. Against Lille, they blew my mind for 120 minutes. It’s normal."

Martinez saved from Kingsley Coman in the World Cup final shoot-out, while his ability to wind-up opposing players also contributed to Aurelien Tchouameni missing from the spot.

He then called for a minute’s silence for Mbappe, who had scored a hat-trick during the match, as he and his team-mate’s celebrated in the dressing room, before later taking a doll with the then PSG striker’s face on it to a victory parade in Buenos Aires.

Martinez again took centre stage on his first return to France since the World Cup when Villa were paired with Lille last season. 

The keeper was booked twice on the night, once during the match and again in the shoot-out, having “shushed” the home crowd after saving Nabil Bentaleb’s penalty.

He then became the match-winner with his second save from Benjamin Andre.

Discussing the reception he received in Lille, Martinez said: “They insulted me the entire match. Never had I been so insulted in my life. They did everything!”

“I didn’t do anything in the 120 minutes of the game. The fans insulted me so much during every goal kick that the referee issued me a yellow card in the 30th minute! After that, I shut them up during the penalty shootout.”

Villa head to Paris for the first leg of their quarter-final tie on April 9, with the return in Birmingham on April 15.