Explained: Why Emi Martinez is banned from first leg of Aston Villa's Europa Conference League semi-final with Olympiacos

The Argentine shot-stopper played a pivotal role in Villa's journey to the last four of the competition with a standout performance coming in the quarter-final shootout victory over Lille where he saved two penalties. However, amidst the triumph, Martinez found himself embroiled in controversy for his gamesmanship by provocating the home crowd, which forced the referee to show a yellow card.

UEFA's regulations mandate a suspension for players accumulating three bookings throughout the competition, provided they do not result in a red card. Consequently, Martinez's indiscretions during the two-legged quarter-final tie against Lille have led to his suspension for the upcoming first-leg encounter with Olympiacos. He was warned in the first-leg clash against Lille on April 11 and twice during the second-leg encounter on April 18.

Martinez launched a staunch defence of his actions after the match and stated to TNT Sports: "It’s been a hell of a ride all my career. I’m a believer and I’m a hard worker and it was my destiny to win here again. I’ve got a reputation for time-wasting because the other goalkeeper was doing the same but I got booked for time-wasting. Then again there was no ball on the penalty spot so I was asking the ballboy for a ball. I don’t understand the rules. I always say all my career, my team needs me. We were watching Real Madrid against Manchester City yesterday and the manager was saying we might go to penalties.”

As Aston Villa prepare for the Europa Conference League semi-final showdown, Martinez's absence poses a significant setback for the team. However, they remain determined to overcome this obstacle and secure a favourable result in the first-leg encounter against Olympiacos at Villa Park on May 2. The keeper will be back between the sticks for the second leg on May 9 and if the game requires a shootout after 120 minutes of action, Villa can count on Martinez once again.