Emiliano Martinez reveals wishes for Argentina teammate Lionel Messi to join Aston Villa this summer after claiming the forward could leave PSG…
- The Aston Villa stopper has made a bold claim ahead of the transfer window
- Martinez called on his compatriot Messi to move to the Premier League
- It is rumored that Messi will leave French giant PSG in the summer for free
Emiliano Martinez has boldly called up his Argentina team-mate, Lionel Messi, to join Aston Villa in the summer transfer window.
Messi’s future at PSG has been the subject of much speculation in recent weeks, given that his current contract expires this summer.
Despite having the option to extend his contract for a further year, the Argentine superstar looks ready to leave the Parc des Princes for free after being refused a contract extension.
His recent two-week suspension for a trip to Saudi Arabia will have done little to help his fractured relations in Paris and finally confirmed his summer exit.
There were rumors that Messi would take his talents to Saudi Arabia if he leaves PSG, but Argentina team-mate Martinez has now thrown in Villa’s hat.
Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez made a bold claim during a recent ESPN interview
The Argentina stopper called on national teammate Messi to make a sensational Villa substitution
In a recent interview with ESPN, Martinez was asked if Villa could sign the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner. He replied: ‘If they whistle Messi I would bring him here to Villa.
“Hey man, we drink mate, we eat asados every week. I will reduce my salary, we will do our best.”
The Villa goalkeeper was referring to the scorn Messi received from PSG fans in his first game back since serving a two-week suspension.
In their thumping 5-1 win over Ajaccio earlier this month, the crowd booed when Messi’s name was announced in the line-up and when he touched the ball for the first time.
French media reported that Messi was suspended for two weeks after traveling to Saudi Arabia a day after their 3-1 defeat to Lorient last month.
The World Cup winner returned to the squad days later, having apologized to his teammates for the trip, causing him to miss one of their training sessions.
Despite being reintegrated into the PSG squad, the Argentine has refused to extend his contract for another year and is approaching a summer break.
As his former club, Barcelona, pushes for a return to Spain for Messi, recent reports claimed he had been offered a two-year deal worth £887m (€1bn) in Saudi Arabia.
The Argentine’s future at PSG has been called into question after a two-week suspension
However, Messi’s father Jorge denied that an agreement had been reached with another club and said no decisions would be made until the end of the current season.
Last week, Barcelona president Joan Laporta said he will do everything he can to bring Messi back to Camp Nou this summer.
He said: “We are already working on next year’s team. We hope to be able to strengthen the team.’
“We are in a budget cut plan at the club to have enough fair-play to enable us to improve the team. We are doing our homework to have an even more competitive team next season.’