Man Utd and Chelsea fight for Emi Martinez: The state of play

Stuart Telford

• 20 Dec 2022 20:09 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester United and Chelsea are both fighting for the right to sign Argentina's World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emi Martinez from Aston Villa.

Martinez's stock has been on the rise ever since he left Arsenal for Villa in a €21.8 million deal in September 2020.

He kept a Premier League-high 15 clean sheets in his first season at Villa Park and won the Copa America with Argentina at the start of his second.

READ: Emi Martinez: Arsenal's worst transfer mistake?

Now he is a world champion with his country, one who won the Golden Glove after penalty shoot-out heroics against the Netherlands in the quarter-final and France in the final, and his agent has admitted Villa might struggle to hold onto him.

'Aiming for the Champions League'

"Today, there are very few teams that can afford a goalkeeper like him," Gustavo Goni told TUTTOmercatoWEB. "But Serie A, well, why not? Clearly, we're aiming high, for the Champions League."

While Italian clubs might have an interest in Martinez, the player is now rated at €40.5m by Football Transfers' in-house algorithm and Villa - who squeezed €118m out of Manchester City for Jack Grealish in the summer of 2021 - could hold out for more.

READ: Man Utd make big David de Gea decision

That kind of money puts Martinez more in the scope of the Premier League clubs, and two of the league's giants in Man Utd and Chelsea have problems in the position.

United are reportedly ready to let David de Gea's contract expire in the summer, with Erik ten Hag unconvinced by his ball-playing ability.

Graham Potter doesn't full trust Kepa Arrizabalaga at Chelsea, meanwhile,, even though the Spaniard has been reinstalled as first choice ahead of Edouard Mendy since the Englishman succeeded Thomas Tuchel as head coach.

Bayern Munich have also been linked with a move for the 30-year-old after their No.1 Manuel Neuer broke his leg on a skiing trip following Germany's group stage exit from the World Cup.