Arsenal and Gabriel Martinelli: If he is good enough for Jurgen Klopp

Jurgen Klopp has extolled the brilliance of Arsenal centre-forward Gabriel Martinelli. And if the Brazilian is good enough for Klopp, well, he must be special.

In the modern era, a crucial characteristic of Arsenal football club has been an eagerness to acquire, develop and eventually star young players. Those from the academy are given chances to prove their value at the highest level, while scouts are regularly sent across the world to acquire the best young talent possible.

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Arsene Wenger was a major proponent of this. He believed that the job of manager pertained to more than just winning games. He had a responsibility to manage every aspect of the club, including the development of players, from personal progression to readying them for senior football. And now, in the post-Wenger era, such a philosophy remains.

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Last summer, it was Matteo Guendouzi, a 19-year-old second-division French midfielder. He cost £6 million and was thrust straight into the first team. A year later, he is now the best central midfielder at the club.

This year, Arsenal took a similar path with Gabriel Martinelli, an 18-year-old striker from the depths of Brazilian football. Martinelli, like Guendouzi, has impressed greatly in his first few appearances. He has scored seven goals in all competitions, sensationally averaging a goal every 62.1 minutes. Only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored more.

And Martinelli is now catching the eye of people beyond the Arsenal community. Speaking with Brazilian TV show Esporte Interativo, Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp was glowing in his appraisal of Martinelli:

"“It was not in this game only. I watch a lot of football, so I saw the Europa League games of Arsenal. He’s 18 years old, right? So our scouting department is all over the world and stuff like this, but I think Edu gets all the credit for that signing – he came from… wherever. He’s really unbelievable. So young, looks so mature already, is a proper threat. Yeah, he looks like a really decent player. But I didn’t want to put any backpack [pressure] on his back with this thing [his earlier remarks] but I just really like good football players and obviously he’s a very good one.”"

This comes after he called Martinelli one of the brightest talents in world football following the Brazilian’s brace against Klopp’s Liverpool in the EFL Cup last week. For Klopp, Martinelli is a truly brilliant player, someone who the Gunners should be looking to build around for many years to come. And if Martinelli is good enough for Klopp, who am I to argue otherwise?

Like Wenger, Klopp is an excellent judge and developer of talent. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Sadio Mane, Fabinho, Andy Robertson. These are all players who have progressed substantially as a result of Klopp’s coaching. The German is one of the best managers in world football.

So, it would be fair of fans to get rather excited about Martinelli and what he is capable of. Piling on the pressure is not helpful, of course, but as his performances have proven thus far, Martinelli is special. Arsene Wenger would be most proud.