Emi Martinez has approved a move to Chelsea, with the possibility that the former Arsenal goalkeeper could make his debut for the Blues at the Emirates Stadium.
David Ornstein and Jacob Tanswell broke the news for The Athletic on Wednesday that Aston Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez has been offered by his representatives to Chelsea, and the Blues are considering signing him.
Martinez was previously set for a move to Juventus, but that fell through, and Villa have replaced Martinez with Zion Suzuki. If the goalkeeper wants regular minutes, he probably needs to leave the club.
As a result, it’s no surprise that Fabrizio Romano is reporting that Martinez has approved a move to Chelsea, and Chelsea’s management, ownership, and head coach Xabi Alonso are in serious internal talks to assess the signing.
Romano adds that Chelsea would need to sell a goalkeeper first, so they’re on a tight schedule now.
If Martinez does join Chelsea around deadline day (next Tuesday), his first opportunity to play for his new club would coincidentally be away to Arsenal. Chelsea visit Arsenal for a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, September 6th at 16:30 BST.
Martinez had a relatively poor year with Aston Villa in 2025/26, keeping just eight Premier League clean sheets to finish outside the top-10 goalkeepers in the division. Arsenal’s David Raya finished first for the third season in a row.
Things went better for Martinez and Villa in Europe, where they won the Europa League, but the club evidently decided they needed more between the sticks before their step up to Champions League football.
Given Chelsea have no form of European football at all, Martinez would need to be sure he’s going to get minutes domestically. But if he is, the transfer wouldn’t be a surprise, particularly after Robert Sanchez’s recent performances.
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