Emiliano Martinez's psychology & mind games explained in World Cup final via a thread

A professor from the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences has provided a detailed thread on his social media account to explain the mind games Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez played in the FIFA World Cup 2022 final against France on Sunday. The services of the Aston Villa goalkeeper were called upon after a thrilling Argentina vs France final ended 3-3 after extra time and went to a penalty shootout.

Emiliano Martinez's mind games in Argentina vs France game explained

Geir Jordet, a professor, took to his Twitter account and put up an outstanding thread to explain in detail how Emiliano Martinez got the better of his French opponents in the penalty shootout. In order to explain his point, Jordet put up several images and indicated exactly what gestures Martinez made that put him in a superior position.

In his thread, he wrote, "Martinez set the stage and took ownership of the penalty area from the beginning. While Lloris completed the coin toss, Martinez quickly walked to the penalty area, waiting for Lloris to come, like he was welcoming a visitor to his own home: You’re in my house now!"

The thread added, "When Lloris arrives, Martinez initiates a handshake. Same w Mbappé. This is his style. He can be warm & lovely at first, which makes people drop their guard, leaving them more vulnerable when he later strikes. This ambiguity is in itself abusive and part of his strategy."

While Martinez received a tremendous amount of flak from footballing pundits over his behaviour in the FIFA World Cup 2022 final, what is most important is that he got the job done. The 30-year-old made two saves (one was a miss) to help Argentina win their third World Cup trophy (1978, 1986) in 36 years.

Martinez had such an outstanding tournament in the goal and for that he was also awarded the Golden Glove. Speaking of his receiving the award, the Aston Villa goalkeeper told Argentinian media outlet La Red, "I dedicate the title to my family. I come from a very humble place. I went to England very young. I want to dedicate it to them."