Premier League goalkeeper spotted at Barcelona airport amidst transfer speculation
Emiliano Martinez has fuelled speculation about a summer move to FC Barcelona after being spotted at the Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport.
The timing of his arrival is raising eyebrows, as it coincides with his agent Jorge Mendes' meetings with Barça officials, primarily centred around Lamine Yamal and Ansu Fati.
Advertisement
However, the presence of the Aston Villa goalkeeper in Catalonia has inevitably sparked suggestions that his name may have come up in the club's internal discussions as well.
Certain to leave Aston Villa
The Argentine World Cup winner is widely expected to leave Aston Villa this summer, even though his contract runs until 2029.
According to sources from England, Martinez is exploring options to move on, particularly with an eye on Champions League football. While interest from Saudi Arabia is reported, his priority remains a move within Europe's elite.
Emiliano Martinez has been spotted in Barcelona. (Credit: Jijantes)
His current club, Villa, will only participate in the Europa League next season, which may not match the goalkeeper's sporting ambitions at this point in his career.
Linked to Barcelona
It is also no secret that Barcelona are actively looking for a new goalkeeper. With Inaki Pena set to leave and the Wojciech Szczesny operation stalling due to his silence over a renewal deal, the club's sporting department is carefully scanning the market.
Advertisement
Other options like Joan Garcia have also been mentioned, but Martinez's profile offers a blend of top-level experience, leadership, and a winner's mentality that Barça could find very attractive.
Given all this, seeing Martinez in Barcelona cannot be brushed off as a mere coincidence. While there is no official confirmation that the goalkeeper met with club representatives, the optics of the situation are intriguing.
Atletico Madrid and Manchester United are reportedly monitoring his situation as well, but with Barcelona also looking for a solid presence between the posts, a potential transfer to Camp Nou looks like a realistic proposition.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
37 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Olympic high jump gold medalists Kerr and Tamberi debate the rules for ties
ROME (AP) — At the last two Olympics, the men's high jump produced a tie — requiring a big decision. In Tokyo four years ago, Gianmarco Tamberi and Mutaz Barshim agreed to share the gold. In Paris last year, Hamish Kerr and Shelby McEwen agreed to a jump-off that Kerr finally won after an interminable series of misses. Nearly a year later, Kerr is suggesting that sharing should be eliminated from the rule book. 'In the future, does that need to be an option?' Kerr, who is from New Zealand, told The Associated Press on Thursday as he prepared to compete at Rome's Diamond League meeting. 'It's probably not something that I would ever take,' Kerr said of accepting a tie. 'I think it's great that we have people jumping off for medals.' Tamberi, unsurprisingly, does not agree. The Italian noted how Kerr and McEwen combined for 11 straight misses — so many that there wasn't enough room on the scoreboard for all the Xs — in regulation and the jump-off. And that the bar was lowered twice during the jump-off before Kerr finally broke the streak of failures when he got over 2.34 meters (7 feet, 8 inches) to win. 'It becomes an endurance competition and isn't about who can jump the highest anymore,' Tamberi said when asked about Kerr's comments. 'I think people appreciated the moment of sportsmanship that we created in Tokyo. 'Or maybe they should try to find a different way to determine the winner in terms of who jumps the highest,' Tamberi added. 'But jump-offs are really strange, because it's about who has more energy and who can last longer. It's like turning the 100 meters into the 10,000.' The shared gold between Tamberi and Barshim strengthened an existing friendship and Kerr said he feels an enduring bond with his American opponent McEwen, too. 'Obviously we could have shared and we could have sort of walked away from it without having such an awesome experience and a really kind of engaging moment for the crowd and for everyone back home,' Kerr said. 'But we both decided to jump and that was really special. We've got a special bond now.' Tamberi is back Kerr and McEwen have continued their rivalry this season with the American winning two of their three meetings. But Tamberi is making his season debut in Rome and looking to spice things up, while McEwen is not entered for the Golden Gala. Both the 28-year-old Kerr and the 33-year-old Tamberi plan to continue competing through the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. First up, though, is this season's world championships in Tokyo in September. Calendar change World Athletics has made a calendar change so that starting this year the track season ends with the worlds. That means that the Diamond League finals in Zurich will be held at the end of August. 'It's a good move, because athletes need to prepare for the worlds and there won't be a post-worlds or post-Olympics where athletes often compete only to salute their fans or for economic reasons,' said Tamberi, whose wife is expecting the couple's first child in August. ___ AP sports:
USA Today
44 minutes ago
- USA Today
Spain vs. France: Where to watch, TV channel, live stream
Spain vs. France: Where to watch, TV channel, live stream Show Caption Hide Caption U.S. soccer player Trinity Rodman says Dennis Rodman is 'not a dad' U.S. women's soccer star Trinity Rodman has spoken openly about her strained relationship with her father, NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman, criticizing his lack of involvement in her life. unbranded - Sport Spain will face France on Thursday in the second of two UEFA Nations League semifinals. Portugal defeated Germany 2-1 on Wednesday and will face Spain or France in the final at Allianz Arena on Sunday. Spain is the defending champion after winning the 2022-23 competition, while France won the previous Nations League in 2020-21. Watch Spain vs. France on Prime Video This game will be a rematch of a thrilling semifinal at Euro 2024, which Spain won 2-1 en route to winning the title. Dani Olmo and Lamine Yamal scored in that match, erasing an opening goal by Randal Kolo Muani. Yamal is considered one of the favorites for the Ballon d'Or, despite still being just 17. On the other side of the pitch, Ousmane Dembélé is also among the top contenders after helping Paris Saint-Germain win this season's Champions League. Here is everything you need to know ahead of the match. Projected lineups Spain XI: Unai Simon; Oscar Mingueza, Pau Cubarsi, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella; Pedri, Fabian Ruiz; Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, Nico Williams; Alvaro Morata. France XI: Mike Maignan; Pierre Kalulu, Ibrahima Konate, Clement Lenglet, Theo Hernandez; Kone, Adrien Rabiot; Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Doue; Kylian Mbappe. How to watch Spain vs. France When: Thursday, June 5 Thursday, June 5 Where: MHP Arena (Stuttgart, Germany) MHP Arena (Stuttgart, Germany) Time: 3 p.m. ET 3 p.m. ET Channel/streaming: FS1, ViX (Watch on Prime Video) We recommend interesting sports viewing/streaming and betting opportunities. If you sign up for a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage
Associated Press
an hour ago
- Associated Press
No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka ends Iga Swiatek's 26-match French Open winning streak and reaches the final
PARIS (AP) — No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka ended Iga Swiatek's 26-match French Open winning streak and reached the final in Paris for the first time by winning a back-and-forth semifinal 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-0 on Thursday. Sabalenka's victory prevented Swiatek from becoming the first woman to win four consecutive championships at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament since professionals were admitted in 1968. It also gives Sabalenka a chance to win her fourth major title — and first away from hard courts, after two at the Australian Open and one at the U.S. Open. The 27-year-old from Belarus also took the top WTA ranking from Swiatek last October. Sabalenka will face No. 2 Coco Gauff or 361st-ranked French wild-card entry Lois Boisson in the final on Saturday. ___ AP tennis:
