Emery to be concerned by Martinez injury update ahead of Aston Villa v Brentford
Unai Emery’s side has been plagued by injuries this season as Aston Villa struggle to have the same ferociousness in the Premier League.
Despite finishing fourth in the division last term, beating Tottenham to a Champions League spot, the Villans have slumped all the way down to 12th.
Emery’s side have not claimed victory since their 2-0 win over Bologna in October, since losing five matches and drawing three in all competitions, even admitting that teams have found them out.
That was incredibly obvious during the 3-0 defeat to Chelsea on Sunday 1 December, with Nicolas Jackson, Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer putting them to the sword at Stamford Bridge.
And to make matters even worse, star player Emi Martinez was forced off at half-time with a new injury, having suffered a fracture on one of his fingers [Gaston Edul].
Emi Martinez to miss Aston Villa v Brentford?
Speaking to the media [3 December, The Athletic], Emery said: “We are going to train this afternoon and I don’t know how he is going to feel. It depends on the training today. He could be in for tomorrow or not.”
The World Cup winner has been an integral member of the squad over the last few seasons, not just as a shot-stopper but also as a leader to the rest of his teammates.
Clearly comfortable with the ball at his feet, Martinez has an impressive 80.7 per cent passing completion in the Premier League this season as well as boasting a 71 per cent long ball accuracy [FotMob].
He was even more accurate against Chelsea, completing 85 per cent of his passes before sustaining his new injury [FotMob], but he could do little about conceding the two first-half goals.
While Robin Olsen has proven himself as Villa’s second-choice shot-stopper, he has incredibly big shoes to fill, and his 45-minute cameo at Stamford Bridge may concern Emery.
His passing accuracy dropped to 76 per cent while his long ball accuracy, compared to Martinez’s, plummeted all the way down to 29 per cent [FotMob]. It’s quite a difference on the pitch.
In other Aston Villa news, Unai Emery was proven right after what a 0% Villa man did v Chelsea, had fewer touches than Robin Olsen.
Leave a Reply