- Martínez mocked the Lille fans after saving Nabil Bentaleb’s shot in the penalty shootout
- In the match he received a second yellow card, but remained on the field.
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King of the dark arts Emiliano Martínez said it was his destiny to be the penalty shootout hero as Aston Villa booked their place in the Europa Conference League semi-final.
The Argentine goalkeeper, who helped his country win the World Cup 18 months ago in similar circumstances, produced further heroics against Lille, saving penalty kicks from Nabil Bentaleb and Benjamin Andre to claim a 4-3 win in the penalties after the quarterfinals were over. 3-3 overall.
Much of his trademark cunning was on display when he silenced the angry French crowd, who had not forgotten what happened in Qatar, and then caused confusion by receiving a yellow card from the referee in the middle of the penalty shoot-out, after having been cautioned. normal time.
But yellow cards do not carry over to penalties, meaning he could stay and send Villa to their first European semi-final since 1982.
“It has been an incredible journey my entire career. I am a believer and a great worker and that was my destiny today,’ he said on TNT Sports.
Emiliano Martínez confronted the Lille fans during the penalty shootout
The Argentine saved two penalties and Aston Villa reached the semifinals of the Conference League
“I always say throughout my career that I owe it to my teammates in those moments, even when we were watching Real Madrid last night the coach said that we could go to penalties and in those moments I am the owner of my area.”
Of the drama of the penalty shoot-out, where referee Ivan Kruzliak showed him a yellow card, he said: “It’s a reputation for wasting time because the other goalkeeper was doing exactly the same thing.”
“I got a yellow card after 30 minutes and we were losing the game, so I don’t know what the referee wants from me.
‘Then there was no ball at the penalty spot and I was asking the ball boy for a ball and he cautioned me; I just don’t understand the rules.’
Martínez’s heroics rescued Villa, who did not deserve the victory as they had been outplayed for most of the second leg in France, with goals from Yusuf Yazici and Andre reversing a 2-1 lead in the second leg. Going.
Matty Cash’s goal in the 87th minute sent the match into extra time, and Martínez triumphed in the penalty shootout to give coach Unai Emery his eighth consecutive European quarterfinal victory.
Martínez received a yellow card in the penalty shootout, his second of the night, but remained on the field due to a little-known UEFA rule.
Villa is the last English team left in Europe after their spectacular victory in France.
The Spaniard, so prolific in the Europa League with Sevilla and Villarreal, will look for another European trophy.
And with Villa leading the race to finish in the top four in the Premier League, which would qualify for the Champions League for the first time in the club’s history, the Argentina international says something special is on the horizon.
“This group of players and the coaches are special, the owners are also involved, they are always behind us,” he said.
“It seems like we are going to do something special, I don’t know if it’s the Champions League or I don’t know if it’s the Conference League, but we’re trying to do everything we can to push the football club forward.”
