There’s a common feeling in football of being so reliant on one standout individual that when they are missing, a sense of doom arrives.
Aston Villa supporters know all about it.
Without Emi Martinez protecting the defence and offering not only a solid platform but a calming presence, there’s a feeling of tension. The team seems to share the same nervousness when they are up against it.
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Robin Olsen, the understudy to Martinez, may well be an international goalkeeper for Sweden with plenty of experience but he doesn’t exude the same confidence as Villa’s No 1. Olsen’s distribution isn’t as crisp and in the majority of games he has played for Villa there have been errors, some leading to goals.
How, in the 1-1 draw on Saturday, Brentford’s Kevin Schade failed to convert when Olsen spilt the German’s initial header to present him with an open goal, remains one of the weekend’s biggest mysteries.
Perhaps it’s unfair to expect Olsen to be faultless when typically he is called upon at short notice, with little time to prepare. To give him some credit, after coming through a difficult start and some hairy moments, he grew into the game towards the closing stages as the pressure began to ease.
Yet the difference with and without Martinez is clear to see.
The 30-year-old World Cup winner has had another fine season for Villa and there was a clear void when he was forced off at half-time through illness.
He fought through the pain in order to start the game, and was seen wincing in the minutes before kick-off and discussing his upset stomach with members of the club’s medical team. The conversation had started hours before the warm-up when Martinez signalled that he wasn’t feeling right, but was determined to play on.
Aside from a few grimacing expressions, he appeared OK to continue. Once the game got underway there was no sign of his troubles in his performance. He mixed up his passing early on, switching between short and long distances and looked both calm and comfortable in possession.
It was actually some of Martinez’s fine work in the first half that kept Villa in the game and helped extend an unbeaten run to nine matches. He showed his authority in the box by cutting out a Schade cross with a vital interception early on. That really set the tone.
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Then when Villa lost possession on the halfway line and Brentford attacked through Ivan Toney, he saved well to deny the England striker.
The most impressive moment came shortly before half-time. Martinez came charging out of his box — a skill that he has mastered — to win the ball from Vitaly Janelt with a sliding tackle.
Mistime a challenge like that and it’s a red card, arrive too late and the attacker has the advantage, yet so often Martinez comes out on top. In this instance, the officials flagged for offside but Martinez didn’t know that at the time, and his commitment once again highlighted his desire, even when he wasn’t in a fit state to perform.
Villa feel his presence, and it’s no coincidence that Argentina have started to win major tournaments since Martinez became the No 1. He was inspirational in penalty shoot-outs in both the Copa America and World Cup.
Before the weekend Villa had conceded just one goal from open play in eight games and, while that record was never going to last, there was always a much stronger chance of extending it with Martinez on the pitch.
Would Martinez have kept out Toney’s goal? Probably not. But when he had to go off Villa lost so much: his connection with the backline, his shot-stopping ability and his personality. At set pieces, Villa rely on him to lead by example and command the area. His strengths are highlighted by the fact he’s caught the ball more times (46) than any other goalkeeper in the Premier League this season.
This season he has had to take on new instructions and become a key part of how Villa play out from the back.
Granted, it hasn’t been totally smooth for him either. There were times early into Unai Emery’s reign when Martinez misplaced passes in dangerous areas and struggled to find his range with the diagonal balls out to the full-backs. That’s why a degree of patience is going to be needed when Olsen plays too, because it takes time to get used to new systems and passing sequences.
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Fortunately, Villa are confident Martinez will have enough time to shake off the illness and be fit for Tuesday’s home game against Fulham. It’s an important game, with Liverpool breathing down their neck in the race for the top six.
Martinez was one of the first players in this evolving Villa team to hype up the talk of European football and, as he reiterates in every interview, his target is to win a trophy here in the West Midlands.
As long as he’s playing, Villa stand a greater chance of doing that in the years ahead.
(Photo: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)