Football fans having a love-hate relationship with their former players is nothing out of the ordinary – jeering them, booing every touch, making insulting chants, and more.
However, Arsenal fans seem to have a different level of hatred for Emi Martinez, the current Aston Villa goalkeeper, ever since he decided to leave the North London club during his prime years and became the best keeper in the world.
Arsenal fans took Emi’s exit to heart and have since taken every opportunity to show how much they hate Martinez. Similarly, the Argentinian goalkeeper is not afraid to rile up the opposition players and fans, as he capitalizes on every opportunity to bait the Arsenal fans.
It was evident in the recent match as Martinez came with a plan to thwart not just the fans but the players as well.
The plan started even before the kick-off whistle as Emi Martinez started his pre-match warm-up in the tunnel, making it difficult for Arsenal staff and ground crew to walk as they had to go all the way around him.
On a clip making the rounds on social media, Martinez was seen sitting on his haunches while holding the ball while wearing gloves in the middle of the tunnel.
People just trying to do their jobs… honestly, you can see why we sold him. pic.twitter.com/HU7JsrTc6f
— LE GROVE (@LeGrove) December 31, 2025
Arsenal fans did not appreciate the pre-match gimmick and made their displeasure known.
Even during the match, Emi Martinez continued to rile up the fans by taking a few extra seconds to take goal kicks. He would waste time to frustrate the home side and their supporters.
However, it all amounted to nothing as Arsenal ran rampant on Martinez’s goal and won 4-1.
Arsenal players and fans gave Martinez back in spades, mocking him throughout the 90 minutes with chants like “Emi, what’s the score?”, “David Raya, he’s better than you”, and “you’re just a s**t David Raya”.
The brutal assault did not end even after the game, as when Martinez was heading to the dressing room, one of the fans was heard yelling, “You’re rattled! F*** off, f*** off, f*** off! He’s so rattled. Wakey wakey.”
Interestingly, Villa were cruising comfortably and didn’t look like conceding until Gabriel’s contentious goal, where he seemed to have elbowed Martinez, preventing him from catching the ball. Despite getting looked at by VAR, the ref awarded the goal to Arsenal.
Feeling robbed by the ref and frustrated by all the mockery and chants, Martinez lost it and made angry gestures at the Arsenal fans in a fit of rage and had to be escorted by the security.
What do you make of this episode? Do you think Arsenal fans were wrong to treat a former player like this or is it just a part of the game? Let us know in the comments section.
