Topics: Emiliano Martinez, Argentina, Angel Di Maria, Premier League, Aston Villa, Football World Cup, France
Angel Di Maria has defended his teammate Emiliano Martinez after the Argentina and Aston Villa stopper was labelled 'the biggest piece of s*** in football'.
The comments came from 2018 World Cup winner Adil Rami, who took aim at Martinez over his taunting of French players in the wake of his nation's World Cup victory earlier this month.
Martinez's antics - which included carrying a toy baby with Kylian Mbappe's face on it for the homecoming bus parade - have been called out by numerous fans and pundits in the days following Argentina's historic third World Cup win.
And yet, harsh words seemed to cut deep amongst the Argentine players, as his Instagram comments prompted a reply from none other than Angel Di Maria.
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Di Maria told the 36-year-old Troyes defender, who was in France's triumphant 2018 squad, to 'go cry elsewhere', after proclaiming teammate Martinez to be the 'best goalkeeper in the world'.
However, the clash didn't end there, as former Valencia defender Rami hit back with 'Can you teach me? [how to cry]', showing four pictures of Di Maria himself in tears with the captions: 'When you lose', 'when you win', 'when you leave a club', 'when you see this tweet'.
The 34-year-old winger, who now plays for Juventus, notably cried while on the substitutes' bench during the 2022 World Cup final, with the emotion of the night getting the better of several Argentinian stars.
Martinez's fellow international teammates Leandro Parades and German Pezzella also pushed back against Rami's criticism. Parades joked: "Now say it without crying Rami."
Pezzella cheekily added: 'Get out of here,' in reference to captain Lionel Messi's words to Holland's Wout Weghorst after Argentina edged past the Netherlands in a fiery encounter.
By contrast, Crystal Palace manager and former French World Cup winner Patrick Vieira condemned Martinez's 'stupid' decision to mock Mbappe and his teammates.
Vieira's former Arsenal teammate Ian Wright also chastised the 30-year-old keeper, stating that he 'crossed a line'.
Regarding his gamesmanship in the final, Wright stated: "I was thinking this guy is going to go to another level of s***housery if this final goes to penalties. And he did.
"I like Emi [Martinez] but what he did in the penalty shootout crossed the line, in respect of sportsmanship. He crossed the line."
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