'Fantastic' Martinez 'has important personality'
Unai Emery says goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez "has a brilliant mentality" and he "is very proud" of his performance in the Europa Conference League quarter-final.
In an extraordinary shootout after the tie ended 3-3 on aggregate after extra time, Martinez - who had been booked earlier for time-wasting - was shown another yellow card for appearing to gesture to home fans.
Martinez, who had already kept out Nabil Bentaleb's attempt, was allowed to carry on as his initial booking was not carried over into the shootout.
The Argentina World Cup winner then went on to keep out Benjamin Andre's attempt as Villa won 4-3 on penalties to advance to the last four.
"He is very important for us," said Emery. "He has his personality and his personality in the dressing room is very important because he is a leader with all his experiences. He has a really brilliant mentality.
"And then on the pitch he has his personality and he played fantastic. He saved two penalty shots, so of course I am very proud of him. I am very proud of all the players."
On whether he and his players thought Martinez had been sent off in the shoot out, Emery added "yes, but the rules are like that.
"Yesterday you [the media] were all asking about me about the reception he will get here in France and you could see it throughout the game. He is very experienced and he was trying to control his emotions but the supporters were pushing him. I believe in him and he is mature but with personality. He is always under his own control."
