Argentina’s Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez Banned for Inappropriate Actions

• Argentina goalkeeper Martinez was banned for ‘offensive behavior’.
• Martinez was found guilty of holding a replica of the Copa America trophy to his groin.
• He was also penalized for hitting a TV cameraman’s camera with his gloves.

Argentina’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has been handed a two-match ban by FIFA for “offensive behavior,” as confirmed by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) on Saturday.

The 32-year-old Aston Villa player was also found guilty of “violating principles of fair play” in two separate incidents.

Martinez breached FIFA’s code of conduct when he held a replica of the Copa America trophy to his groin following Argentina’s World Cup qualifier victory over Chile on September 5. This isn’t the first time he has engaged in such actions, as he previously did the same with the Golden Glove trophy for best goalkeeper after Argentina triumphed over France in the 2022 World Cup final.

FIFA also penalized him for hitting a TV cameraman’s camera with his gloves after Argentina’s 2-1 loss to Colombia on September 10.

The AFA expressed their disappointment with FIFA’s decision, stating, “It should be noted that the Argentine Football Association expresses its absolute disagreement with the decision taken by the FIFA disciplinary committee.”

Due to this ruling, Emiliano Martinez—who played a pivotal role in Argentina’s Copa America victory in July, as well as the 2021 edition—will be absent for the World Cup qualifiers against Venezuela on October 10 and Bolivia on October 15.

Argentina currently leads the South American qualifying table with 18 points after eight matches, while Colombia trails just two points behind.

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