Emi Martinez to Manchester United transfer details emerge as family speak out

Emi Martinez's dream move to Manchester United fell through on transfer deadline day, and his family have since spoken about the situation.

The Aston Villa goalkeeper had been open to leaving Villa Park this summer after five seasons with the club. A switch to Old Trafford emerged as a possibility and, despite signing a new deal last year, Villa were prepared to sanction his exit.

However, no suitable offer arrived during the transfer window. United did submit one loan proposal for Martinez earlier in the summer, but it was rejected. No further approach from United was made, including on deadline day.

Instead, United opted to sign young goalkeeper Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp. Martinez's brother Alejandro has opened up about the transfer that did not materialise, telling DSports Radio: "I was told that Emi gave a lot as a professional and as a person, they love him, and you could see that on the pitch.

"He is well-liked - and the directors didn't want to sell him because he is the key player in the team - and another team wanted him. It was that commercial dispute. These are decisions made by club officials. It didn't happen, but it's like everything else in business.

"The sporting side of things was left out of it, and everything is fine. Emi never had an argument with Unai [Emery]; it was all within the management's control, and the clubs couldn't agree. At Aston Villa, he's the Diego [Maradona] of Napoli.

"He gave a lot at Villa, like Kun [Aguero] did at City, like Leo [Messi] did at Barca.

"They're legendary players, and it's going to be hard to surpass what he did at Aston Villa."

Meanwhile, the World Cup winner's father, Alberto, also shared his views and added: "This is a job, this is a factory, and