Gabriel Martinelli addresses Kieran Tierney before facing him at the World Cup

Gabriel Martinelli expressed his admiration for his former Arsenal teammate Kieran Tierney. The two players could face off in their final group stage match at the World Cup tonight.

In a press conference, Martinelli said, "I hope he doesn't play so well against us, but I'm always cheering for him... He's my guy. He's one of the best guys I've met in football. He's so kind and so humble as well. So rapid! We used to joke about who was the quickest in the sessions; in my opinion, it was always him."

A funny anecdote was when Martinelli said in cockney slang, "They just won the league innit." This was in reference to Tierney and Celtic's recent triumph in the Scottish Premiership. It is no surprise that Martinelli has picked up the local lingo, as he has been with Arsenal since 2019.

Tierney joined Arsenal at the same time, but has not lost his Scottish accent. Tierney was sent on loan to Real Sociedad for the 2023/24 season. He then returned to Celtic last year.

Will we see Martinelli go up against Tierney tonight?

Martinelli was left on the bench for Brazil's opening game of the World Cup against Morocco. This match ended 1-1. However, he came off the bench as Carlo Ancelotti's side defeated Haiti in their second game. Martinelli could start against Scotland as Raphinha is injured. However, Ancelotti could play Rayan or even Neymar on the right wing instead.

The right wing is Martinelli's favored position, but that role is occupied by Vinicius Junior for Brazil. Therefore, we may only see Martinelli make a substitute appearance against the Scots.

Tierney was also not in action for his country in their opening World Cup game. He was left on the bench as Scotland beat Haiti 1-0. However, he played left midfield as they then lost to Morocco by the same scoreline. Steve Clarke has the difficult task of fitting both Tierney and Andy Robertson into his lineup. Both are natural left-backs.

The Celtic player came off against Morocco after 60 minutes due to cramp. However, he still trained as usual with the rest of Scotland's squad following the match. It remains to be seen which lineup Clarke will go for in this crucial match against Brazil.

Brazil currently tops the group on goal difference as they are level with Morocco on four points. Morocco is expected to defeat Haiti, and Brazil is the favorite against Scotland. However, Scotland's win over Haiti has meant that they could still go through to the knockout stages by being one of the best third-placed teams.

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