Petr Cech and Arsene Wenger back Emiliano Martinez to shine as he signs new Arsenal contract

Going places: Wenger backed Martinez to be Arsenal's No.1 of the future
Getty Images
James Benge25 November 2016

Petr Cech has offered a glowing endorsement of Emiliano Martinez’s potential after the young goalkeeper signed a new contract at Arsenal.

In a week that has also seen Hector Bellerin agree new terms at the Emirates 24-year-old Martinez, third-choice goalkeeper behind Cech and David Ospina, put pen to paper on a long-term deal that will extend his stay at the Emirates.

Martinez, who has made four Premier League and two Champions League appearances under Arsene Wenger, has been Arsenal’s EFL Cup this season and kept clean sheets in victories over Nottingham Forest and Reading. He is expected to retain his place for next week’s home quarter-final against Southampton.

The Argentinian goalkeeper was part of the first team squad when Cech arrived in 2015 but in the space of 18 months, much of which has been spent on loan, Arsenal’s number one has seen Martinez make serious progress.

In Pictures | Arsenal v Reading | 25/10/2016

1/17

“He’s been here for a few years now and I would say that you can see his progress,” Cech told Arsenal Player. “Having gone on loan a few times and having proved that he has the ability to play at this level - it’s been a learning experience for him as well.

“For a player that is not playing as much, he is always ready. I think that he enjoys the game and he is that person you know you can always put him in and rely that he will give you the performance you expect.

“I think that’s a big asset for a goalkeeper because you need to know that your goalkeeper is there every day.”

Having spent the 2015-16 season on loan at Wolverhampton Wanderers and also spent at Championship sides Rotherham United and Sheffield Wednesday, Martinez has been retained by Wenger this year and will remain with the first team until at least January.

The Arsenal manager has great expectations for Martinez and, despite having the likes of David Ospina and Roma loanee Wojciech Szczesny on his books, Wenger earmarked the 24-year-old as “the future goalkeeper at this club”.

Martinez said: “Arsenal means everything to me. I grew up here, I learnt English here and I’ve got everything in the UK. I love this club and I want to be the No 1 goalkeeper here for many years.

“Since I signed for this club, [goalkeeping coach] Gerry Peyton told me that I had great talent and that I was the future. I think this moment is now and I’m trying to push forward. The boss is giving me the League Cup and I’m trying to prove myself, to show the fans and everyone how good I am.

“It’s not just about playing well in a game, it’s about being the first one to arrive and the last one to leave training too. I’m one of them, which is why my future is here.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in