Aston Villa hero Emi Martinez 'got inside head' of Bruno Fernandes with Cristiano Ronaldo taunt

Old Trafford would be a fitting place to stage Emiliano Martinez's grand finale. It's not Villa Park but The Theatre of Dreams is a stadium of notable significance for the 32-year-old goalkeeper, who looks poised to consider his future at the end of the season after breaking down in tears following last week's 2-0 triumph over .

Unai Emery's monstrous World Cup winner, renowned for his leadership and spot-kick heroics, has forged a reputation as one of the game's most-fearsome shot-stoppers. Former Villa goalkeeper coach Neil Cutler played an instrumental role in Martinez's development and has pinpointed the precise moment the Argentine began to embrace his role as a pantomime villain.

Cutler said: "The one big moment to start with was away in 2021, they got a late penalty and and were the two players in conversation.

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"Emi said to Ronaldo, 'no I want you to take it, he's rubbish' because we knew we could get into Fernandes because of how emotional he can get. Fernandes then missed and that's where it all first started.

"Emi got joy from it and all of a sudden he realised he could talk people out of it and put them off. It then becomes about doing anything you possibly can to gain those small advantages."

Cutler, who left his role at in December, was the unsung hero behind Villa's game-changing capture of Martinez in the summer of 2021 amid fierce competition from a host of top clubs including .

He frequently held detailed dialogue with the goalkeeper long before Martinez eventually signed on the dotted line and together, the pair hatched a plan to transform the trajectory of the former Arsenal's man stop-start career.

Cutler continued: "I'm big on building relationships really quickly in order to help players progress in every aspect. We talked every single day for a long time before he arrived. It was just so he understood the kind of person I am, I'm empathetic, caring and I like to work on them as people, not just goalkeepers.

"I think it was the perfect match because he was ready to go as a No.1 in the and push on from there.

"We spoke a lot about getting him in the Argentina squad, we had that same drive so there was a lot of talk between us on where we wanted him to go and how we'd get there. We hit it off straight away and he inspired my desire to improve as a coach."

Cutler made such an impression upon Martinez that he was invited out to Argentina's pre-World Cup training camp in Miami in 2022.

"We pushed forward together and he's massive on development, he's like a sponge,every day he just wants to get better and better," Cutler added.

"When he first came in he showed signs of frustration more than psychological strength, he'd walk around the pitch and his shoulders were hunched over.

"We worked on how you can portray confidence to the point of arrogance, we worked a lot on his posture, how he walks, how he talks so it always seemed like he's the best goalkeeper in the . It was about always showing it, always feeling it and he really took that on."

It's difficult to forecast what lies ahead for Martinez but one thing is for sure, he will prove integral to their chances of victory at Manchester United as Emery's men prepare to launch one final assault in their quest for a top-five finish.

Cutler is set to become the first football coach to offer personalised, virtual sessions via online platform , initially launched to connect students across the globe.

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