Emiliano Martinez only needed one month to establish himself as Argentina’s No. 1 goalkeeper, and on Tuesday, he became a new national hero by saving three times in a shootout in their Copa America semi-final against Colombia.
With the score tied 1-1 after the regulation 90 minutes, the Aston Villa goalkeeper’s exploits in the shootout moved Argentina into a mouthwatering Copa America final against hosts and reigning champions Brazil.
Lionel Messi, so often the key player for Argentina, paid tribute to Martinez.
Photo: AFP
“It was difficult at times,” he said. “But we have ‘Emi,’ and he’s phenomenal. We trusted him.”
Martinez had little to do over the 90 minutes, but was superb in the shootout, diving at full stretch to save from Davinson Sanchez, Yerry Mina and Edwin Cardona.
He also earned a rebuke from the referee for his non-stop cheeky chat aimed at Colombia’s players, as they lined up to take their kicks.
The 28-year-old only made his international debut on June 3 in a FIFA World Cup qualifier against Chile.
He was injured in Argentina’s next match against Colombia and taken off the field when they were leading 2-0. The game ended 2-2 and Martinez was thrown right back into the fray for the next game.
Martinez, who might not even have started at the Copa America had River Plate goalkeeper Franco Armani not tested positive for COVID-19, said that there was no stopping Argentina now.
“We’ve spent 40 days locked away, not seeing anyone outside our bubble,” he said after Tuesday’s win. “We said on the first day, we want to get to the final and what better way than to play Brazil at their home. Brazil have a great team, but we have the best in the world — and we’re going there to win.”
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS