Aston Villa has made the decision to block goalkeeper Emi Martinez from pursuing his Olympic dream with Argentina’s squad. The 31-year-old goalkeeper had aspirations of competing in the Paris 2024 Olympics to potentially secure an Olympic gold medal alongside his World Cup triumph. However, Villa has chosen to exercise their right to prevent his participation in the tournament, ensuring his availability for pre-season training with Unai Emery’s squad.

The Olympic football competition, which concludes on August 9, is not officially recognized by Fifa, allowing clubs to reject call-up requests. It has been reported that Villa also rejected a similar request from France concerning players Lucas Digne and Moussa Diaby to join their Olympic squad. Martinez, who is currently representing Argentina at the Copa America, will be given time off following the tournament before rejoining the squad for pre-season preparations.