Emiliano Martinez has revealed how his hand is permanently disfigured and what he sacrificed to play at the World Cup.
The Chelsea goalkeeper suffered heartbreak at the tournament as Argentina were beaten in the final in New York by Spain.
Martinez, 34, almost did not play at the tournament after breaking his finger during Aston Villa‘s Europa League final victory over Freiburg.
The Argentine stopper was left distraught after seeing his X-rays, believing he would miss the tournament in the USA.
However, he was backed by national team coach Lionel Scaloni and received a special glove from Adidas that would allow him to play.
Martinez opted against surgery and did not train with normal balls until the quarter-final against Switzerland.
He said that he is still in need of an operation and suffering daily pain.
The goalkeeper has revealed that his hand is disfigured and that he can not properly close his fist during an interview with Los Edul.
Showing his clenched fist with one finger unable to close, Martinez told the reporter: “It will stay like this for the rest of my life.”
He added: “I broke my finger in the Europa League final. When the doctor showed me the X-ray, I started crying because I thought I would miss the World Cup.
“Scaloni messaged me and said: ‘Whether you make it or not, I’ll back you… come anyway’.
“We decided not to have surgery. Adidas made me a special glove, and I played with my finger completely wrapped. I could only feel four fingers.
“I couldn’t even train with normal footballs. I trained with volleyballs until the Switzerland game.
“How much did it affect me at the World Cup? Ten out of ten.
“I was practically a zombie. Every time my hand touched the ground, I saw stars.
“I cried until midnight because my finger was swollen like a blood sausage.
“After the World Cup, I had another X-ray and the finger was still broken in half.
“I still play through pain today. I’ll eventually need surgery.”
Following the World Cup, Martinez completed a £7.5million transfer from Villa to Chelsea.
He has made six appearances for the West Londoners, keeping one clean sheet and conceding 11 goals.
He last played for the club on October 17 but was forced off injured after breaking his jaw in the game against Everton.
He subsequently underwent surgery and initially suggested he would be out for several weeks.
But reports have claimed that Martinez could be set to return to action sooner than first anticipated.