It’s Happened Again, It’s Happened Again! Emi Martínez, It’s Happened Again!

It’s Happened Again, It’s Happened Again! Emi Martínez, It’s Happened Again!

Yes, that’s right. Emi Martínez has once again had a potential move away from Aston Villa fall through in the final stages of negotiations. This time it was Juventus who were the club to snub the Argentine goalkeeper, leaving Martínez stuck with The Villans.

What went wrong this time?

To fully understand how Martínez has been on the receiving end of yet another failed transfer away from the current Europa League winners, we must first look at the transfer saga of Zion Suzuki.

The Japanese international had an impressive World Cup campaign this summer and attracted PSG to make a move to sign him. Reports surfaced last week, including from journalist Fabrizio Romano, that a deal had been struck between PSG and Parma for the transfer of Suzuki for €35m.

It was also reported that the 23-year-old goalkeeper would be loaned out ahead of the upcoming season for the security of regular minutes. One of the clubs interested was Juventus.

However, before talks could get seriously underway between Suzuki’s camp and Juventus, the agreement with PSG collapsed and was never revisited by the Ligue 1 side.

According to L’Equipe, Suzuki’s representatives wanted to push the commission fee up to €5m. PSG refused to meet this demand and therefore meant the move was no longer on the table.

While PSG were left frustrated by the transfer falling through at the final hurdle, Aston Villa saw an opportunity to pounce. They approached Parma with the same structured deal that PSG had laid down. €30m plus another €5m in potential add-ons.

On Sunday reports from journalists David Ornstein, Ben Jacobs and Fabrizio Romano surfaced that Aston Villa and Parma had agreed a deal for the transfer of Suzuki. But with the Japanese goalkeeper now joining The Villans, what does this mean for Martínez?

🚨🟣🔵 Aston Villa and Parma have started exchanging documents for Zion Suzuki deal.

Follows agreement with the Japanese GK after #AVFC match PSG bid as deal with French club collapsed yesterday.

🇯🇵 All set for travel and medical, as @jacobsben @david_ornstein reported. pic.twitter.com/q0xk3EyC2A

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 16, 2026

What next for Martínez?

With Aston Villa willing to spend €30m on a new goalkeeper, it’s a fair assessment to make that Suzuki will be the starting goalkeeper for the upcoming season. Therefore Martínez started exploring his options elsewhere.

This is where Juventus rejoins the conversation. After missing out on the highly rated 23-year-old shot stopper, they decided to pursue a deal for Martínez.

It was confirmed by Ornstein for The Athletic that Aston Villa had received a bid for their Argentine goalkeeper, worth €7m guaranteed plus €3m in add-ons related to the team’s success.

This fee slightly drops below Villa’s valuation of their former World Cup winning goalkeeper, as they wanted a guaranteed €10m upfront. A compromise looked set to happen as both sides were willing to work together.

However, despite an agreement looking set to be achieved in the coming days, Juventus have walked away from the deal. This has left Martínez in an awkward position as Suzuki is arriving at Villa Park.

🚨 Emiliano Martinez from Aston Villa to Juventus off. Talks reduced price gap & personal terms for 33yo goalkeeper no issue but #Juve not proceeding on deal. #AVFC will try to find solution but either way Zion Suzuki new No1. W/ @J_Tanswell @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/s74ggNpzQN

— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) August 16, 2026

It remains to be seen whether the 33-year-old goalkeeper would be willing to play second fiddle to Suzuki, but he might not have much of a say in the decision. The current Villa goalkeeper has made over 250 appearances for The Villans and helped them to their first piece of European silverware in 44 years.

In that match against Freiburg the Argentine fractured the ring finger in his right hand but managed to play the full game despite the injury. Juventus had concerns about the injury whilst in discussions with Aston Villa, which could be one of the factors resulting in the Serie A side walking away from any potential deal.

Last summer Martínez was linked with a move to Manchester United, however he ultimately decided to stay at Aston Villa and subsequently won the Europa League with them.

Although things feel different this time around, as Martínez wasn’t the one to walk away from the deal, and with new number one Suzuki coming into the picture, the two-time Yashin Trophy winner may be left without a source of regular playing time.