Emi Martinez was given his second yellow during Aston Villa's penalty shootout with Lille - but he wasn't sent off.
Villa and Lille couldn't be separated during their Europa Conference League quarter-final on Thursday evening. And, as a result, the game went to spot-kicks, with the Argentine at the centre of attention as he stood between the sticks.
However, Martinez, known for his 's***housery', saved the first penalty and immediately shushed the Lille crowd. The Stade Pierre-Mauroy was a cauldron as Martinez continued his antics, and he was handed a yellow card - after already being booked during the game.
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READ MORE: Lille fans try and storm the pitch to confront Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez
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TNT SportMartinez, however, remained on the pitch - leaving fans and commentators confused as to what was actually happening. According to IFAB's rulebook "penalties (penalty shoot-out) are taken after the match has ended and unless otherwise stated, the relevant Laws of the Game apply.
"A player who has been sent off during the match is not permitted to take part; warnings and cautions issued to players and team officials during the match are not carried forward into penalties (penalty shoot-out)."
What do you think of Emi Martinez escaping a red card? Let us know in the comments section
As a result of staying on the pitch, Martinez still had the chance to be the hero - and he saved Benjamin Andre's spot kick to send Villa into the semi-finals.
"Penalty shootout with your life on the line, Emi Martinez is your goalkeeper 10 times out of 10 The man needs to be studied in a lab," one fan posted. While a second said: "How’s Emi Martinez been given a 2nd yellow card during his penalty shootout but he’s still in net for the penalties?"
"Emi Martínez got two yellow cards but they couldn’t kick him out. The King Of France," a third joked. And another added: "He knew the rules nobody else knew about, including the commentators!"
Martinez, after sending Villa through to the semi-finals with his save, charged the length of the pitch, to the backdrop of boos.
Elsewhere in the tournament, Fiorentina dumped out Viktoria Plzen. And those two will be joined in the semi-finals by either PAOK or Club Brugge and Fenerbahce or Olympiacos.
