Arsenal legend Tony Adams has suggested that Mikel Arteta should’ve never sold one player because he was ‘perfectly great’.
The Gunners manager has had to make a number of brave decisions since he took charge of the club back in December 2019.
Almost all of his calls have been proven right, but Adams has now suggested that there was no real need to sell one player to a rival Premier League club back in the summer of 2020.
Tony Adams comments on Arsenal’s decision to sell Emiliano Martinez
Emiliano Martinez spent over a decade at Arsenal after joining the club as a teenager.
The Argentine never really became the first choice at the Emirates. Even when he did get a run of games, it was because Bernd Leno got injured.
Martinez impressed during that period and helped Arsenal win the FA Cup and the Community Shield in 2020. He was absolutely incredible then.
The goalkeeper wanted to become the club’s number one, but Arteta refused to give him that title. The Arsenal boss wanted him to compete with Leno for that role.
That didn’t sit well with Martinez, who decided it was time to move on. He joined Aston Villa in September 2020 for a fee of £17 million (BBC).
Martinez has since become one of the best goalkeepers in the world. He has been brilliant at Villa Park and also played a big part in helping Argentina win the Copa America and the World Cup.
When asked what he makes of Arsenal’s decision to sign David Raya on the permanent deal, Adams told Sky Sports: “I liked Martinez, to be honest. I thought he was a perfectly great goalkeeper.”
Adams then praised Arteta for sticking with Raya during his difficult moments at Arsenal last season.
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Who is better – David Raya or Emi Martinez?
Martinez has shown since leaving Arsenal that he is good enough to compete at the highest level.
The Argentine produced some huge saves for Argentina when they won the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. He was absolutely integral to them.
However, if the debate is between Martinez and Raya to determine who the better goalkeeper is, we would have to go with the Arsenal man.
The Spaniard played 32 games in the Premier League in the 2023/24 season and kept 16 clean sheets, conceding just 24 goals. Raya also won the Golden Glove award.
Martinez, on the other hand, played two more games than the Arsenal goalkeeper but kept seven fewer clean sheets. He also conceded twice as many goals as Raya did – 48!