Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli Provides Injury Update

Arsenal hearts were in mouths when Gabriel Martinelli hobbled off against Man City.

With just 65 minutes of football under his belt – more than half of that coming for the Under-23’s – since he last kicked a competitive ball for Arsenal in March, Gabriel Martinelli‘s start against Manchester City was one of few positive notes.

Starting up front(ish) with Alexandre Lacazette, the Brazilian managed to show in such a short space of time how vital of a component he is in the attack. Even if he didn’t touch the ball too often in the first half, his endless running and closing down was precisely the level hunger that fans had remembered from before he went under the knife.

That exact desire nearly proved to be his downfall in the first half as he got locked in a footrace with Zack Steffen, one the goalkeeper’s closer proximity to the ball not only saw him get the first touch, but also follow through on the 19-year-old.

On a scale of Dani Ceballos to genuine pain, Martinelli leaned heavily towards the latter. It’s always a telling sign when the shirt gets pulled over the face.

Couch diagnoses were made over fear of a repercussion of his knee injury, as the writhing agony strongly suggested so. It became clear that his shin was the impacted area and seeing him walk off, albeit gingerly, was a colossal sigh of relief.

A decision was made for him to carry on and walk it off, although it became apparent after the break that it was to painful to persist with and the substitution was made.

Speaking after the game, Mikel Arteta addressed the issue with his verdict tempering fears, although didn’t reveal the extent of it.

"“It was just a really bad kick on his shin and it was swelling up and he could not continue,” he told the official Arsenal website. “[At half-time] he was pushing, he was saying he was completely fine, that he wanted to carry on. He had a scar that wasn’t open and he wanted to try, so we gave him the opportunity to try and when he was on the pitch he was uncomfortable so it was an easy decision to take him off.”"

Gabriel Martinelli Provides Injury Update

One thing that is sure about Martinelli, is that he isn’t someone to give in for the sake of a knock. As Arteta alluded to, it was the forward’s desire to continue on despite the problem, calls that arguably should have been overruled in favour of both easing him into his return and for risk of aggravating it.

However, he’s come through mostly unscathed.

Posting on his official Twitter page, Martinelli revealed he’s ‘feeling fine and ready to go again’, news most welcome in the eyes of supporters; and probably his teammates too.

With Chelsea to come on Saturday, Arsenal need all the firepower they can get as they search for a first Premier League win in seven matches. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang remains a doubt with a calf problem, and while chances aren’t falling for any player, if they do it’d be favourable to have the captain on the end of them.

Now available for the clash against the Blues, it goes without saying that Arsenal’s chances of securing a positive result sky-rocket with the former Ituano man.

A combination of Martinelli bringing something entirely different to the table and the Gunners continuing to be weak and lifeless up front, his return adds a splash of colour to the monochrome canvas that is Arsenal.

Why Gabriel Martinelli is Different

Discussing the obvious point first, he’s got incredible ability.

A counterpoint to any Martinelli hype is that any half-decent player would stand out in a positive light when surrounded by mediocrity. That argument has been used for Bukayo Saka, too.

It needn’t be mentioned that the team is poor and only a select few aren’t, but Martinelli isn’t just better than the rest, he’s miles clear.

All facets of his game come to him so naturally, from instinct on the ball to reading of space off it. He adds movement to a static Arsenal forward line, energetic in every phase of play whether it’s the persistent pressing or willingness to sprint to the corner flag to chase a loose ball.

Throw into that the raw talent he has with both feet, neat close control and accomplished finishing, and you’ve got the inner workings of a player who will be among the best in Europe at some stage of his career.

But while those traits undoubtedly set him apart, they wouldn’t be noticeable were it not for his personality. It’s not a comparison based on individual ability or on the impact they’ve made in the Premier League, but the infectious nature of Martinelli is reminiscent of Bruno Fernandes at Manchester United.

Obviously not on the same scale, the impulsive nature of his approach is nonetheless infectious. Players see that work-rate and hunger and follow suit. Fernandes is on a different level, but there was a period in the first half where you could see the rest of the Arsenal side taking after the 19-year-old, hounding City’s central midfielders on the ball and forcing turnovers.

It shouldn’t be that a 19-year-old sets the tone (where else have we said this?) but that’s how it sadly is in this team.

Martinelli will give Arsenal new impetus for the second half of the season. That’s not unwarranted pressure or a declaration that Arteta’s side will suddenly soar up the table, just that it’s impossible to ignore talent such as his when it’s staring you right in the face.