The Explore Team was interested in Emiliano Martinez’s legendary save against Randal Kolo Muani during the 2022 World Cup final. With proof that this feat owes nothing to luck or a miraculous reflex .
It is perhaps one of the greatest saves in football history. One of the most decisive without doubt. We are of course talking about Emiliano Martinez’s masterful save against Randal Kolo Muani, at the very end of the 2022 World Cup final between France and Argentina. Without this now legendary feat, France would certainly have won its second World Cup in a row, and Lionel Messi would still be in search of the prestigious trophy, with one less Ballon d’Or to his name.
Almost a year later, L’Equipe Explore dedicated one of its issues to this memorable action. By first analyzing the gesture of Kolo Muani, then especially that of Emiliano Martinez. We thus see that the Argentine goalkeeper voluntarily left a lot of space on his left (2.49 m on one side and only 64 cm on the other), in order to encourage the French attacker to strike first. post. Meanwhile, the Aston Villa goalkeeper, resting on his right leg, prepares to relax on the “right” side.
“I came out deliberately leaving a little space on my left. (…) I pushed him to shoot there,” Emiliano Martinez told France Football when the Yachine Trophy was awarded.“Then at the moment of his strike, I relaxed my left arm and my left leg to close the angle. It’s something I’ve been working on. »
Martinez spoke the truth
A worked stop, really? Knowing the character, we could say that Emiliano Martinez is bragging, and embellishing the story with a save that could have been a lucky, even miraculous, reflex. How could he have predicted that he would one day find himself in such a situation? But L’Equipe Explore investigated, looking “all the shots suffered by the Aston Villa goalkeeper during the twelve months preceding this final. » To arrive at this discovery: “Dibu” speaks the truth.
This legendary parade is the result of placement work that Martinez made his specialty. On several occasions, such as against Arsenal and Gabriel Jesus in the Premier League, or even during this same World Cup against Australia, the Argentinian pretended to be positioned, only to finally jump to his left, anticipating the attacker’s shot. He knew perfectly well what he was doing against Kolo Muani, and he had the lucidity to put this “technique” into practice in such a crucial moment, in the 120th minute of the most important match of his career. Fascinating.
