Argentina are one of the candidates to win the 2026 World Cup. As reigning champions, many of the roster that won in Qatar 2022 will attend this edition, including Lionel Messi. However, key component Emiliano Martinez‘s appearance might be in jeopardy. A hand injury could take him out of the competition.
Reported by Gaston Edul, Martinez will undergo tests on his hand injury less than a week away from the start of Argentina’s preparation for the 2026 World Cup. Martinez appeared on Wednesday in the Europa League’s final where he helped Aston Villa win the tournament.
Martinez is a world class goalkeeper, born for the big moments and one of the leaders of the Argentinian locker room. While Messi guides the offense, ‘Dibu‘ is the one making it almost impossible to score against them.
Martinez is more than just a GK for Argentina
Martinez is arguably the best penalty-kick-stopper in the world. Between his mind tricks, his skill, and his intuition, Martinez is one of the few goalkeepers that can actually make a penalty kick a dire situation for the attacking team.
"A Van Dijk ya lo conocía de Liverpool. Lo vi patear en definiciones dos veces y las dos fueron cruzado arriba. Dije 'Este no va a cambiar'. Me estiré tanto en ese penal que me lesioné la cadera. Todavía me duele".
— VSports Team (@VSportsTM) March 27, 2023
🗣️ Dibu Martínez, en @AFAestudiopic.twitter.com/n5yn0wBHuq
Per Fabrizio Romano, Dibu admitted to playing the Europa League final with a broken finger. Not having him would be a massive blow for Argentina. The defending champs would lose a top-tier keeper, an elite PK stopper, a locker room leader, and a guy who’s not afraid of the moment.
Who could be Argentina’s GK for 2026 World Cup if Martinez is out?
The guys who could step in for Martinez if he is not fit to play would be Geronimo Rulli from Marseille, or Juan Musso from Atletico Madrid. While both are very good goalkeepers, they don’t have the mileage Martinez has.
Rully is 34 years old. He was a big-time prospect back in the day, though he never established himself as Argentinas #1 keeper. As for Musso, he is 32 years old. He was always a decent keeper, but has had a massive upgrade in form this season.
