Martinez, after spending six seasons at Villa Park, signed a three-year deal with Chelsea on Sunday, August 30.
By Kehinde Okeowo
Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has remained unperturbed despite conceding three goals on his debut for his new club, Chelsea, insisting that “a win is a win”.
Martinez, who signed a two-year deal with Chelsea on Sunday after six seasons at Villa Park, made the comments on Sunday night while speaking to Sky Sports following the Blues’ narrow 4-3 victory over visiting Brighton at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea appeared to be on course for a straightforward win after scoring three goals inside 32 minutes through Roméo Lavia, Pedro Neto, and João Pedro.
However, the visitors pulled one back through Malick Yalcouye in the 60th minute before former Brighton player Pedro inadvertently scored an own goal three minutes later to further reduce the deficit.
Xabi Alonso’s side regrouped, and a remarkable individual effort from Cole Palmer restored the hosts’ two-goal lead with 16 minutes of normal time remaining.
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Deep into stoppage time, Pascal Groß’s deflected effort made for a nervy finish for Chelsea fans, but the team ultimately held on to preserve their perfect Premier League record after two matches.
Reacting to the scoreline after the final whistle, Martinez admitted that he and his teammates did not play “a perfect game”, but stressed that securing the victory was what mattered most.
The Argentina international said: “A win is a win. I know it wasn’t a perfect game.
“But in the end, winning and moving on is what we need. We’ve got 36 games left and it’s one week after another. I am here for a reason.”
He further acknowledged that Chelsea must start defending better and stop leaking goals at the back.
Martinez added: “We had a lot of chances to finish the game. Cole Palmer and João Pedro had chances to kill the game. At the back, we need to bring the goals down.”
