Emi Martinez has come through surgery and is already talking about a comeback. The Chelsea goalkeeper said he would be “back in a few weeks” after an operation that followed a frightening head injury in Saturday’s Premier League win over Everton.
Martinez posted a photo from his hospital bed late on Saturday night. He thanked supporters for their messages and said the operation went well. For a 34-year-old who has spent most of the past decade being called the toughest competitor in any goal he stands in, the tone was typical: the result mattered more than the pain.
How the Emi Martinez injury happened
The incident came in the 67th minute at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium. Martinez rushed from his line to punch away a free kick and collided with Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite. The ball had been whipped into the box by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Branthwaite got back to his feet after treatment. Martinez did not. He was given oxygen on the pitch, received treatment for around nine minutes, and was then stretchered off and taken to hospital. The delay was long enough that the officials added 11 minutes of stoppage time at the end of the match.
After the game, Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso kept his comments cautious. He confirmed it was a concussion, said he had only seen one clip of the incident, and added that the goalkeeper had left the stadium conscious and was undergoing precautionary tests. Everton boss David Moyes admitted he had not yet seen the collision but said he hoped Martinez was fine.
Scans, a fractured jaw and the operation
The first worry was always going to be the head and neck. Scans showed no major concerns involving his neck, back or skull, but further tests found a fractured jaw that needed surgery. Doctors operated within hours, and Martinez was able to update fans the same night.
That is a relief for Chelsea and for Argentina. A broken jaw is painful and disruptive, but it is a very different diagnosis from a serious head or spinal injury.
How long will Martinez be out?
Martinez’s own line is “a few weeks”. The outside estimates are a little longer. The Daily Star reports he is expected to need around six weeks of recovery. At the time of writing, I could not find a firm return date from Chelsea, so treat any specific date as an estimate until the club confirms it.
A goalkeeper also has more to clear than most players. Beyond the bone healing, he needs medical clearance after a concussion and has to be comfortable making contact in a crowded box again. His actual comeback will depend on how the next few weeks go.
If the six-week estimate holds, it carries a knock-on effect for his country. It would rule him out of Argentina’s final international break of the year, when they are due to play Uruguay and Costa Rica in mid-November.
Mike Penders steps in
Alonso’s reaction in the moment was to turn to the bench. Martinez was replaced in the 75th minute by 21-year-old Mike Penders. It was Penders’ Premier League debut, and he helped Chelsea secure their first league clean sheet since January.
That detail will matter to Chelsea fans. Penders now looks like the man most likely to deputise while Martinez recovers, and a clean sheet on debut, in a hostile ground and in a match this chaotic, is a decent audition.
The injury lands barely seven weeks into his time at the club. Chelsea signed Martinez from Aston Villa on a three-year deal, a day before the transfer deadline closed. The fee was reported at £7.5 million, and he arrived as the 2022 World Cup winner who had twice won the Yashin Trophy as the world’s best goalkeeper.
He had needed a new club after Villa signed Zion Suzuki from Parma. At Chelsea, the move came after Robert Sanchez was heavily criticised for his part in both Fulham goals in the season opener. Martinez made his debut against Brighton, a 4-3 home win, and has since been positioned as first choice under Alonso.
In short, Chelsea bought him to add calm and authority at the back, and for the first seven weeks he appears to have done that. Losing him now, even briefly, tests the depth Alonso has.
Chelsea will wait for specialist advice on how quickly Martinez can resume training, and the timetable will likely shift based on how the jaw heals and how he feels after the concussion. For now the immediate picture is simple: Penders is likely to start, and Martinez is already aiming for a quick return.
The more important point is the one Martinez himself made from his hospital bed. Chelsea won, they kept a clean sheet, and their goalkeeper is recovering. Everything else can wait a few weeks.
