Aston Villa Faces PSG in UEFA Super Cup Without Emiliano Martinez
Aston Villa will walk out to face Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup without their biggest personality between the posts.
Emiliano Martinez, fresh from the emotional high and crushing low of another World Cup final with Argentina, has been left at home by Unai Emery for Wednesday night’s showdown at the Red Bull Arena in Salzburg.
The timing is striking. Martinez was in goal for Argentina on 19 July in New Jersey, where the world champions fell 1-0 to Spain after extra time in the 2026 World Cup final. Less than a month later, as Europe’s club season stirs back to life, Villa’s No 1 is nowhere near the matchday squad.
He is not alone.
Emery has also chosen to rest Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins, the English duo who helped England finish third at the World Cup. They were involved in that wild 6-4 third-place play-off win over France on 18 July in Miami, another draining end to a long, intense summer.
The Villa manager was clear about his reasoning when he spoke to French outlet RMC. “I gave them four weeks of holiday, and it was really necessary,” he said. No hint of doubt. Just a firm line drawn between a gruelling international tournament and the demands of a new campaign.
So, with Martinez watching from afar, the gloves pass to Marco Bizot.
The 35-year-old Dutchman is expected to start in goal against PSG, handed the task of facing one of Europe’s most expensively assembled attacks on a neutral night in Austria. For Bizot, it is an unexpected stage; for Villa, a calculated gamble that freshness in August matters more than star power.
Back in Argentina, the message is that Martinez will not be out for long. Reports there insist he will return to club duty in time for Villa’s Premier League opener against Brighton on 23 August. Before that, Emery’s side have one more friendly, a final tune-up against Borussia Monchengladbach next Saturday.
For now, though, the Super Cup will be played without the familiar roar and theatrics of Villa’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper. Emery has chosen rest over risk. The season will reveal whether that caution becomes the foundation of a stronger campaign – or a missed chance on a European stage.
