Aston Villa star has set a new World Cup record despite the fact that he is no longer unbeaten in the final.
Aston Villa star Emiliano Martinez set a new World Cup record after the 2026 FIFA World Cup final last night. Despite suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat, he managed to keep a clean sheet for 105 minutes before conceding to Ferran Torres’ strike.
What’s more, the 33-year-old goalkeeper’s fine form between the sticks led him to set a new record, as reported by Sporting News.
“Martinez’s 11 saves in the World Cup final are the all-time record for saves in a World Cup final.”
Emiliano Martinez is certainly a man of records, especially at Aston Villa. That World Cup save record in the final was certainly one of them. The previous record was only eight saves but was not held by a single goalkeeper. It was shared by two shot-stoppers and also took place in the USA back in the 1994 edition. Brazil’s Taffarel and Italy’s Gianluca Pagliuca both struggled to keep the opposition at bay.
The Argentine, on the other hand, did it all alone this time. Most of his saves were not particularly challenging except for two of them. The first was from Nico Williams in the second half of normal time, and the second came from Lamine Yamal’s stunning free-kick.
Meanwhile, for his club, Aston Villa, he has set a record as the only player at the club to appear in two World Cup finals. Martinez is also the record holder among Villa players for the most appearances at the World Cup (15 games in total from two editions), and is, of course, the only Aston Villa man to have won the FIFA World Cup as well as one of the tournament’s individual awards. He won the Golden Glove at Qatar 2022 and FIFA Best Goalkeeper later.
The only record he could not maintain was his perfect record in finals. This was his first defeat in a final. Previously, Martinez had won every final he had played in.
The Argentine lifted the FA Cup in 2020 and the Community Shield in 2020 with Arsenal. He also won the Copa América in 2021 and 2024, the 2022 World Cup and the Finalissima with Argentina, as well as the Europa League with Aston Villa.
Unlike in Qatar 2022, the goalkeeper, who has spent most of his career in England, could not be the hero for his nation despite his heroic performance. Argentina had been too reliant on Lionel Messi in North America, much like they were in Brazil 2014.
Now, Martinez will have to resolve his future. Villa are still keen to keep him next season, but he has reportedly been interested in switching to Serie A in Italy.
The post Aston Villa star making world cup record despite losing his fortune appeared first on AVillaFan.com – Aston Villa Fan Site.
