‘I love being here’ - Emi Martinez delivers transfer blow to Tottenham & Juventus as he promises ‘many years to come’ at Villa

• Martinez 'loves' being at Villa
• Expresses gratitude for club
• Has been targeted by several sides

WHAT HAPPENED? With the summer transfer window fast approaching and several top clubs in the market for a new goalkeeper, plenty of eyes have been locked onto Aston Villa stopper and World Cup winner Emiliano Martinez. The 30-year-old has gone from strength to strength since joining from Arsenal in 2020, resulting in his future being discussed regularly.

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WHAT THEY SAID: But despite being linked with a move away, Martinez has insisted he is very happy at Villa Park, via The Mirror: “My career went through the roof since I joined the club. I’ve always said I’m grateful to this club and I love being here.

“My family is happy at the club, my boy is obsessed with playing football and he plays for the under-6s in the academy. We’re loving our time here and hopefully there are many years to come.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Having never quite had his chance to shine in north London, a move to Villa was perfect for Martinez to demonstrate his talents. He has since become Argentina's first-choice goalkeeper and is now attracting interest from the Gunners' rivals Tottenham, and even Serie A giants Juventus, who have a plan of action to try and secure the stopper.

Villa's 3-0 win over Bournemouth at the weekend saw the Argentine claim his 33rd clean sheet in 99 league games for the club, surpassing the efforts of both Brad Friedel and Mark Bosnich, which he described as a 'great feeling': “If we had won 3-1, I would go home and not be able to sleep for hours because I always think about what I could have done better to keep the clean sheet. I’m very ambitious, I’m so driven to improve. I try to transmit that to the back four and to the starting XI.”

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WHAT NEXT FOR MARTINEZ? Victory at the weekend leaves Unai Emery's side 11th heading into the international break on 38 points, level with Chelsea after the same amount of games played. They head to Stamford Bridge when the Premier League returns in April.