Frustration got the better of Argentine keeper Emilio Martinez as he smacked a camera in the aftermath of his country’s World Cup qualifying loss to Colombia. The Aston Villa star was approached as he tried to leave the field, and was clearly in no mood to be filmed up close.
The 32-year-old angrily struck the lens with his right hand, clearly knocking whoever was filming off balance.
He then proceeded to storm away as the cameraman tried valiantly to continue filming.
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It followed a surprise defeat for the current World Cup and Copa America winners, with Yerson Mosquera opening the scoring for Colombia with a header 25 minutes in. Argentina, playing without the injured Lionel Messi, levelled three minutes after the break through Nico Gonzalez.
But it was former Everton player James Rodriguez who had the final word, burying a penalty past Martinez on the hour mark with what proved to be the winner. That had followed the keeper trying to use his trademark distraction tactics before the spot kick was taken.
The post-match behaviour of Martinez is the latest in a long line of controversial incidents involving the former Arsenal man. After being one of the heroes of Argentina’s win in Qatar in December 2022, he duly hit the headlines for his lewd trophy celebrations and was also filmed singing derogatory songs about Kylian Mbappe.
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And after his country retained the Copa America last July, Martinez repeated the same antics. He also appeared to lead racist singing about both Mbappe and his compatriots, prompting the French Football Federation to file a complaint with Fifa.
But in a recent interview with the Guardian, Martinez argued he is often misunderstood by fans and pundits. “People who think of me being the show-off are probably the team who doesn’t know me,” he said.
“When you ask all of my teammates, those in the national team, I do everything for my team, I try to help everyone in the club. The only thing that I want is the best for my club and country. That is all that I care about.”
Argentina remain in pole position to qualify for the next World Cup in 2026. They top the CONMEBOL qualifying table on 18 points after eight games, two clear of Colombia
And Lionel Scaroni’s side will be expected to take six points from their next two fixtures in October. They go to Venezuela on October 11, before hosting Bolivia five days later.
