Emiliano Martínez showed up in Argentina's World Cup camp with his left hand heavily bandaged, 11 days before the tournament begins. The 33-year-old goalkeeper posted 11 photos on Instagram and wrote that family was his driving force, his desire to keep going and his motivation to achieve the impossible.
The post landed just as Argentina's search for signs on Martínez's fitness intensified. He fractured a finger 11 days ago in the lead-up to the Europa League final he played against Aston Villa and won, and he is now expected to miss the warm-up friendlies against Honduras on June 7 and Iceland on June 10, according to TyC Sports.
Two of the images he shared showed a large bandage covering almost his entire left hand, wrist and part of his arm, with two fingers immobilized. Lisandro Martínez also posted a photo on X showing him holding mate with the hand wrapped up, a picture that underlined how quickly Argentina's first-choice goalkeeper is trying to move through the injury while the countdown to the World Cup keeps running.
That urgency matters because Argentina has already begun training in Kansas City ahead of defending the title it won in 2022, and its first match is set for Tuesday, June 16, against Algeria at Arrowhead Stadium. Martínez is continuing physical work with the squad, but he has not yet been cleared for goalkeeper-specific drills, which leaves the most important part of his preparation still unfinished.
The next dates now carry extra weight. Argentina plays Honduras on June 7 and Iceland on June 10 before the opener in Kansas City, and then faces Austria on June 22 and Jordan on June 27 in Dallas. If Martínez is not ready for the warm-ups, the question is no longer whether he can train with the group. It is whether he can be fully sharp in time to start when Argentina's title defense begins.
