Dominic King from The Daily Mail, has reported that over the weekend Manchester United had a loan offer rejected by Aston Villa for goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez. The World Cup winner is rumoured to be willing to leave Aston Villa this summer for a new challenge, but for any deal to happen, Villa would need to have a sufficient replacement lined up.
United goalkeeper, Andre Onana, is injured for the start of the Premier League season due to a torn hamstring, leaving manager Ruben Amorim in need of a quality replacement.
🚨 Manchester United have failed in an attempt to sign Emi Martinez on loan from Aston Villa
— Dominic King (@DominicKing_DM) July 21, 2025
🚨 Offer was made over the weekend but rebuffed immediately. United still keen on 32-year-oldhttps://t.co/vDLCW9X3J0
Villa's No 1
The 32-year-old has been a fan favourite since joining from Arsenal in 2020. On his debut against Sheffield United, he saved a penalty in a 1-0 victory and has since gone on to make 212 appearances in all competitions, keeping 66 clean sheets. Over the course of his Villa career, Martinez has become Argentina's No 1, a World Cup winner and a two-time Yashin Trophy holder, and is now regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in world football.
His penalty shootout antics for both his country and Aston Villa, certainly goes down well with supporters, however, for opposition fans it is a contrasting feeling. Martinez's character and love for Villa is another reason as to why he is so well liked by both players and supporters. If he was to leave Villa to another Premier League team like Manchester United, then there will definitely be a bitter-sweet feeling among fans.
Is a Deal Likely?
Aston Villa have set a price tag of £40 million for Martinez, who rejected a proposal from the Saudi Pro League earlier in the summer. He also signed a new contract with Villa until 2029, 12 months ago. There is no chance a loan deal would happen between the two clubs as it does not benefit Villa financially. For a permanent deal to happen, it relies on two things:
- Even if United would be willing to pay the £40 million fee, Villa would need to have a replacement lined up. They have been linked with Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier, who also has a £40 million price tag.
- Whether United would be open to a swap deal with Martinez going one way and Alejandro Garnacho going the other, who United value at £40 million and is of interest to Aston Villa.
Both scenarios will require a lot of moving blocks to fall into place, so it is certainly a deal to keep an eye on in the next few weeks.
One thing is for certain though, the longer this saga goes on in the transfer window, the less likely Villa will be to sell Martinez as there will be less time to find a replacement and the Premier League season would be underway.
