Emiliano Martinez, Argentina's goalkeeper, was instrumental in the team's recent penalty shootout victory against France in the Qatar 2022 World Cup Final. He was able to distract the Les Bleus team from attempting their penalty kicks by continuously kicking the ball away from them.
Since the 30-year-old took a very combative stance during World Cup penalty shootouts, he was the center of attention. In the championship game against France, he delayed Kingsley Coman for many minutes as he spoke with the referee and asked whether the ball had been properly placed in the penalty area.
As Aurelien Tchouameni prepared to take a penalty kick, the Aston Villa shot-stopper would play mind games with him by strolling to his goal line with the ball and then tossing it to the edge of the box. As a result of these strategies, both French penalty shooters missed their attempts, and La Albiceleste won the World Cup by a score of 4-2 on penalties.
To what extent is Emiliano Martinez responsible for FIFA's decision to revamp penalty rules?
Due to the impending changes to penalty regulations, it seems like Emiliano Martinez will have to adjust his strategy for the next season. New regulations will prevent goalkeepers from intimidating opponents from the penalty spot, as proposed by the International Football Association Board.
According to a story in The Sun, the new guidelines won't become law until IFAB formally approves them at their annual conference in March. Penalty kicks, and more notably goalkeepers' bluffs and shenanigans, are expected to be discussed at length.
Goalkeepers who engage in distracting behavior like dancing or making humorous gestures on their goal line may also find themselves in violation of IFAB's proposed new regulations. In fact, it was Martinez who was also spotted dancing and yelling before each penalty during the shootout in Qatar.
