Emiliano Martinez coming to Dhaka!

Argentina's World Cup winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez is likely to come to Dhaka in July ahead of his scheduled visit to Kolkata, the visit's organiser informed on Sunday.

Satadru Dutta, an Indian sports promoter who brought football legends like Pele and Diego Maradona to Kolkata, is all set to bring the Argentina No. 1 to the city of joy.

"Emiliano Martinez is probably the most popular Argentina player after Lionel Messi. So me and my partners are bringing him to Kolkata," the 43-year-old sports promoter told The Daily Star from Kolkata on Sunday.

"We're talking with sponsors in Bangladesh about bringing Martinez to Dhaka on July 3. Things are very positive," Satadru said. "Martinez himself has heard much about Bangladesh's fans' craze about Argentina. He will likely stay there for a day and will likely be available for a meet-and-greet and lunch/dinner type of events."

He will spend July 4 and 5 in Kolkata and will visit Mohun Bagan Football Club, lay garlands at Maradona's statue and, if things go as planned, may visit Sourav Ganguly and Mamata Banerjee's houses.

Martinez played a crucial role as Argentina won their third World Cup in December last year. He made a last-ditch save against Kolo Muani in the dying stages of the extra time of the final against France.