Aston Villa have made some very questionable signing over the years, but the addition of goalkeeper Emi Martinez last season will certainly be up there as one of their best bits of business.
The Argentinian was lured to the West Midlands from Arsenal in September 2020 having been at the north London club for ten years. However, the 'keeper made just 38 first-team appearances for the Gunners in that time and racked up separate loans before finding a new permanent home at Villa.
Moreover, nine of those 38 appearances came in the final two months of the 2019/20 season as first-choice stopper Bernd Leno was ruled out for the remainder of the season in a defeat to Brighton, leading to Martinez getting the nod for the remainder of the campaign.
It was during this spell where, with it taking place during Project Restart after the season had been postponed due to the pandemic outbreak, the goalkeeper showcased his excellent talent. It was almost as though he was putting himself in the shop window with the knowledge that once Leno returned he would be returning to the bench.
Aston Villa shrewdly swooped for then 28-year-old once the season had concluded and bought Martinez for a fee believed to be around £17m.
A year-and-a-half on and the goalkeeper has already more than justified the transfer fee. In 62 appearances for the Villans, the Argentine has kept 21 clean sheets and let in just 81 goals, an average of 1.3 per game.
To put that tally into perspective, Villa conceded 67 goals in their 38 league matches during the 2019/20 campaign before Martinez joined, an average of 1.76.
The 29-year-old has been reliable too, with this season's 3-0 defeat at Chelsea the only league game he's missed for Villa since arriving.
Martinez's stock has risen so abruptly in the last two seasons, that he has been labelled by Argentina teammate Lionel Messi as "one of the best keepers in the world." It seems as though his value will continue to rise.
Upon signing for Villa, it appeared that the West Midlands outfit had slightly overpaid for the goalkeeper, who was valued at £7.2m by Transfermarkt. However, that figure was quickly appreciated.
By the end of the 2020/21 campaign, Martinez's value had almost tripled, being deemed worth £27m in June 2021, £10m more than the fee that was arguably too high.
A month later, and the goalkeeper reached his peak valuation of £31.5m after winning the Copa America with Argentina.
Since then, Martinez's value has slightly declined to £28.8m but there is no doubt that he is still one of the English top-flight's best goalkeepers and will certainly be up there with one of NSWE's most influential signings in the Premier League.