Fakayejo Paul
The goalkeeping dominoes are shifting rapidly across Europe. Aston Villa’s star shot-stopper Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez has reached a full verbal agreement on personal terms with Serie A giants Juventus, signaling his strong desire to move to Turin this summer.
According to reports from Sky Italia and transfer expert Matteo Moretto, the 33-year-old Argentine World Cup winner has agreed to a three-year contract running until June 2029. To facilitate the move, Martínez is prepared to take a meaningful pay cut from his Premier League wages, accepting a package worth roughly €5.5 million net per season to fit seamlessly into the Bianconeri’s internal salary structure.
The Sticking Point: Club-to-Club Negotiations
While Juventus executives Giovanni Carnevali and Ricky Massara have successfully locked in the player’s approval, finalising a deal with Aston Villa remains the core obstacle:
- The Valuation: Having just secured the UEFA Europa League trophy under Unai Emery to punch Villa’s ticket to the Champions League, the English club is under no immediate pressure to sell. Villa are holding firm on a valuation in the €10 million to €15 million bracket.
- Juventus Budget Constraints: Due to a turbulent domestic campaign where they finished 6th and missed out on Champions League revenue, Juve’s budget is compressed. They are trying to negotiate the final fee down as much as possible.
- The Contingency Plan: Should negotiations with Villa hit an unbridgeable financial wall, Juventus have already prepared a concrete fallback option, keeping warm parallel contacts with Tottenham Hotspur’s Guglielmo Vicario.
Martínez’s immediate focus remains in North America, where he just helped Argentina secure a dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt to advance to the quarter-finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Formal pressure from his camp to accelerate the Aston Villa exit is anticipated immediately following the conclusion of his international duties.