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Football London
Football London
Sport
Jamie Kemble

Ian Wright tips Chelsea to complete surprise transfer that would damage Arsenal

Arsenal legend Ian Wright has suggested Chelsea could swoop in and sign goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.

Frank Lampard is having some issues in the goalkeeper department, the Chelsea boss dropping Kepa Arrizabalaga for the final game of the season.

And he might just look to fix the issue by signing Gunners keeper Martinez, who has impressed in the absence of the injured Berndt Leno.

That's according to Wright who, speaking to the Kelly and Wrighty Show, said: "When you go to a No.2, the first thing you do is worry because you think, 'Has he had enough games? Will he be able to deal with the pressure'.

Lampard "proud" of Chelsea after securing Champions League football

"Obviously there’s no fans there, but everybody spoke about Emi and how good he is, but I didn’t realise how good he was because I didn’t see enough of him.

"I saw him in some cup games but he’s commanding, he makes great saves, he’s good on the ground, he's got everything for a No.2.

"The thing that frightens me now with him is that when Bernd Leno does come back and he is fit, why would he want to continue as a No.2 when he’s played to this level being a No.1?

"He will surely want to go and be a No 1 now."

Emi Martinez vs Man City (Matt McNulty - Manchester City/Manchester City FC via Getty Images)

Wright added: "What frightens me is you look at someone like Frank [Lampard] and you look at what Chelsea’s doing, you just say to yourself, 'Do you know something? Can we prise him away?'

"This is what worries me, simply because you look at what he’s done and how he plays, he is better than Kepa now.

"I think he’s probably better than Bernd Leno if I’m going to be totally honest, from what I’ve seen. I’d be gutted [if Martinez left].

"To be honest I don’t want Bernd to go but what I’m saying about [Martinez] is we’ve got to be very careful with him because if Bernd does come back, he’s now played in a situation where he’s played fantastically, he’s been brilliant, and he’s probably got the taste for that now, so why would you want to go back to being a No.2 and not playing?"

Martinez signed for Arsenal in 2012 but he has only racked up 15 league appearances since, nine of those outings coming this season.

The 27-year-old is under contract at the Emirates Stadium until 2022.

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