Aston Villa are set to be without their star man for the first leg of their Europa Conference League semi-final as the suspension is explained.
Villa were involved in an action-packed affair on Thursday night. Up against Lille in the Europa Conference League, Unai Emery’s side went into the game 2-1 up after the victory at Villa Park.
However, in the second leg, the visitors were minutes away from crashing out until Matty Cash made the score 2-1 to take the tie to extra time and then penalties.
Here, the drama really started to rise with goalkeeper Emi Martinez saving the day with two saved penalty spot kicks.
However, Villa’s hero will now be absent from the first leg of the semi-finals against Olympiacos with the suspension explained below.
Emi Martinez suspended for Europa Conference League semi-final
While Martinez was the hero on the night, he almost became the villain of the Birmingham side.
The goalkeeper was on a yellow card throughout the match after picking up a booking in the first half for time-wasting.
Then, as the penalty shootout got underway, the Argentine was shown a second yellow for his antics. In normal circumstances, this would have seen him sent off. However, a little-known rule explains that you cannot receive your marching orders in a penalty shootout for a second yellow.
However, despite this rule, the goalkeeper still finds him suspended for the second leg. Journalist Matt Maher confirmed that despite not receiving a red card for the double yellow, he will still serve a suspension for picking up three cards across the two legs.
Martinez will therefore be out for the first match against Olympiacos but will return for the second leg after serving his one-match ban.
Big moment for Aston Villa’s Robin Olsen
Martinez’s deputy is set to have a massive moment in his career. Olsen has barely featured since signing last season, only appearing 13 times in both campaigns.
However, the Swed is no stranger to the Conference League and has already appeared three times in the competition.
The semi-final will be his biggest test yet. Olsen is a highly experienced goalkeeper and will have the confidence of his teammates.
While he might not have the character Martinez does, he will certainly back himself to keep a clean sheet against the Greek giants and give Emery’s side the best chance to progress.
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