Gabriel Martinelli in line for Arsenal milestone vs West Ham

Arsenal fans have missed this version of Gabriel Martinelli. Minutes have been easier to come by for the Brazilian amid the hectic festive fixture schedule and he’s looking closer to what everyone knows he’s capable of.

The occasional smattering of appearances since his long-term knee injury haven’t been enough for Martinelli to get a head of steam. Five-minute cameos here and Carabao Cup outings there aren’t the continuity here, nor any young player, would crave.

Looking like a man who’s edging closer to the one who burst onto the English scene shortly after his arrival, another fine outing against Southampton saw him edge closer to a milestone he’s yet to reach in just shy of two and a half years at the club.

Should Martinelli be given the nod by Mikel Arteta against West Ham it will be the first time he’ll have started four Premier League matches consecutively.

Gabriel Martinelli in line for Arsenal milestone vs West Ham if Mikel Arteta selects him in Premier League team

He matched his current tally of three on two separate occasions in 2019/20 before injury curtailed his season, and he has yet to equal the feat since.

It goes to show that in football nothing is linear. Of all the seasons where Martinelli has been here it was this campaign where he looked the least likely to earn minutes: Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe have the wide areas locked in, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette were the striker options and Nicolas Pepe was being selected ahead of him off the bench.

A minor injury to Smith Rowe has presented an opportunity, the captain is embroiled in what feels likes manufactured Amazon drama, and Pepe has fallen off a cliff.

These opportunities may present themselves, but they still need taking. This has been the toughest part for Martinelli. Knowing he would only get a handful of chances to shine in the team, usually only briefly at the end of games or out of position against weaker opposition, the desire to impact overruled his decision-making in key moments.

He has been guilty of trying to be the hero and not getting his head up previously, so to take his chance as he did against Newcastle and then follow that up with impressive displays against Manchester United and Southampton is precisely what he had to do.

All of which leaves Arteta with a decision to make against West Ham: does he bring the influential Emile Smith Rowe back into the fold or stick with a winning team and reward Martinelli for his efforts?

It will be interesting to see, although Martinelli will be having a milestone in his sights.