Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
Emiliano Martinez is considering stepping aside from Argentina duty following their defeat in the World Cup final.
Argentina failed to deliver a fourth World Cup – and a second in succession with Lionel Messi as captain – as they went down 1-0 to Spain in last week’s final in New Jersey.
Enzo Fernandez was sent off for a second bookable offence in second-half stoppage time, with Argentina becoming the first team in World Cup final history to not register a single shot throughout the 90 minutes.
Martinez made 11 saves to keep Spain at bay, the most by any goalkeeper since records began (in 1966) in a World Cup final, but substitute Ferran Torres finally broke the Albiceleste’s resistance in extra time.
Argentina will now enter an uncertain period, with 39-year-old captain Messi expected to walk away from the international game and several others, including Rodrigo De Paul, Nicolas Otamendi, Leandro Paredes and Nicolas Tagliafico, having surely played at the World Cup for the final time.
Indeed, with an average age of 30 years and 101 days, Argentina named the second-oldest starting line-up for a World Cup final in history, after Brazil against Czechoslovakia in 1962 (30y 216d).
They also had four starters aged 32 or above, becoming just the third team to do so in a World Cup final after Brazil in 1998 and France in 2006 – all three of those sides lost.
And another of the veterans in Lionel Scaloni’s squad, 33-year-old goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, now has a decision to make regarding his future.
“I dreamt we’d win it again, I dreamt of bringing it back to Argentina and making history once more,” Martinez wrote in an Instagram post.
“The truth is, the pain is hard to explain. There are many things to reflect on and how to move forward, and if it’s time to step aside.
“I’m so sorry, I truly tried my best to help my country and my team-mates.”
Martinez’s club future has also been the subject of intense speculation this summer, with Aston Villa believed to be open to selling him amid links to Serie A giants Juventus.
Martinez’s 11 saves in the World Cup final were more than his Spain counterpart and eventual Golden Glove winner Unai Simon made throughout the whole tournament (10).
He made 20 saves in Argentina’s eight-game campaign, with only Paraguay’s Orlando Gill (23) making more at the competition in total.
Martinez registered a save percentage of 71.4% and conceded eight goals overall, from an expected goals on target (xGoT) figure of 8.6, meaning he prevented 0.6 goals.
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