Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez is still at it in his feud with French superstar Kylian Mbappe. During the victory parade through the streets of Buenos Aires on Tuesday, Martinez was spotted with a doll with Mbappe’s face pasted on it.
What made the situation more awkward was the fact that Martinez was standing beside Mbappe’s PSG teammate Lionel Messi. However, this is not the first time that Martinez has taken a shot at the 24-year-old Frenchman.
Notably, a video clip from Argentina’s dressing room after the World Cup win showed the entire squad celebrating the victory by singing and dancing.
The squad could be heard chanting “a minute’s silence for” in tandem when Martinez filled a deliberate pause with the shout: “For Mbappe who is dead!”
Similarly, in the lead-up to the summit clash, Martinez resorted to playing mind games by targetting Mbappe. The Aston Villa keeper attacked the PSG stalwart over his previous statements about the quality of football in South America.
“He doesn’t know enough about football. He never played in South America. When you don’t have this experience, it may be better not to talk about it. But it doesn’t matter. We are a great team, recognised as such,” said Martinez.
The 30-year-old was referring to statements made by Mbappe a few months ago where he said European nations are better prepared for World Cup compared to their South American counterparts.
“Argentina haven’t played games of great quality to reach the World Cup. In South America, football isn’t as advanced as Europe. That’s why if you look at the last World Cups it’s always the Europeans that win.”
While Martinez stood out with his superman-level goal-saving skills in the final, Mbappe fared superbly as well. He bagged a hattrick when his side was staring at a one-sided defeat. If it wasn’t for Mbappe, the game would have been dead-and-buried at the end of 90 minutes.
(With inputs from agencies)
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