Manchester United’s transfer window plans were sent into a tailspin after Andre Onana’s injury, which led to renewed focus on the noise surrounding Emiliano Martinez.
Emi Martinez, as he’s widely known, became a Man Utd target as the club faced the prospect of their first-choice goalkeeper missing the entire pre-season.
It was recently reported that United entered ‘concrete talks’ for Martinez, which, combined with Aston Villa’s interest in Alejandro Garnacho, was seeing the stars align.
After those claims from the Argentinian media, Fabrizio Romano has now shared a ‘guarantee’ update on the player’s potential move to Old Trafford.
Emi Martinez to Man Utd transfer latest
Martinez follows United’s new philosophy of trying to sign Premier League-proven players after the previous management got burned on many fancy signings for big money.
The goalkeeper’s international pedigree and leadership experience made him an attractive option for the club, especially as recent reports suggested that he also has a release clause.
Goalkeeper is not a position Amorim was particularly interested in prioritising in the market due to United’s financial condition, but Onana’s injury could have forced their hand.
Romano, speaking on his YouTube channel, shared the latest on the story, telling the ‘guarantee’ he’s hearing from his Aston Villa sources.
He said: “Man Utd have not made any bid [for Emi Martinez]. From what I understand, Aston Villa sources guarantee that they have not received any bid.
“United spoke to Martinez’s reps several times to be informed about the situation, but it happened in June. That’s not recent. Onana’s injury is not a super long injury; it’s a matter of weeks.
“There’s no club-to-club negotiation. Martinez could be open to joining, but it depends on United. At the moment, there are no concrete negotiations or anything close to completed.”
Man Utd unlikely to move for Martinez
All the noise surrounding Martinez seems to be generated by the Argentinian media, which screams that his agents are trying to whip up a storm.
United’s situation is delicate in the sense that Onana’s injury is not ideal, but signing Martinez for anything other than to facilitate a potential purchase of Ollie Watkins or sale of Alejandro Garnacho wouldn’t be financially prudent.
Martinez and Onana both have the pedigree to be the No. 1, and United’s financial condition isn’t such that they can afford a luxury signing like that while gaping holes exist elsewhere.
If Onana had been sold, Martinez would have been an ideal replacement, at least in the short term, but, as it stands, he could even represent a downgrade on Onana.
A transfer involving PSR shenanigans is the only way this move makes sense from United’s perspective, regardless of how much his agents try to get the club on the table with the noise in the Argentinian media.
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