PARIS (AP) — Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez received a hostile reception — as expected — when he took the field for his side's Champions League quarterfinal first leg at Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
Martinez had a busy night as Villa lost 3-1.
As the Argentina 'keeper came out for a pre-match warmup, fans in the Auteuil section of the Parc des Princes stadium immediately started jeering and whistling him. Some insults could also be heard.
Martinez, who had the light blue and white colors of Argentina's national flag painted on the left side of his head, did not respond and calmly started stretching.
Martinez was goalkeeper for Argentina when it beat France in a penalty shootout at the 2022 World Cup final. He stood out for his shot-stopping ability but then got even more noticed afterward.
He crudely brandished the Golden Glove trophy he received on the field as the tournament's best goalkeeper and was filmed mocking France forward Kylian Mbappé in the team locker room after the game.
Martinez didn't stop there.
During an open-top bus parade back home to celebrate the victory, he carried a doll with Mbappé's face on it. That was seen as highly disrespectful by the French team and their fans.
On Tuesday, he arrived in Paris wearing a cap that appeared to display a rooster — a French national emblem — along with trophies he has won with Argentina.
He made an early save in Wednesday's game, leaping to his right to keep out Ousmane Dembele's angled half-volley.
But he was powerless to keep out excellent strikes from Désiré Doué, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Nuno Mendes, although he did make some good saves. ___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Jerome Pugmire, The Associated Press
