Gabriel Martinelli chasing an Arsenal all-time great's 31-year record

Arsenal continue to fight on all four fronts. On Sunday afternoon, the Gunners demolished Wigan Athletic 4-0 in the FA Cup, with Noni Madueke, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus all on target, as well as an own goal. All the goals came in the first 27 minutes, which is the fastest any Premier League side has ever scored four times in any FA Cup tie.

As Gooners await the fifth round draw which takes place on Monday evening, their team continue to fight on all four fronts. Despite only two victories in six, Mikel Arteta's team remain four points clear at the top of the Premier League, ahead of away trips to Molineux and then the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium later this week.

Meantime, March will see Arsenal return to Champions League action in the round of 16, as well as face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup Final at Wembley. While the Premier League title is the trophy, above all else, that supporters crave, having not won any silverware for six seasons, no competition is being deprioritised by anyone at the club. Well, for one squad member in particular, they are showing their best form in cup competitions, seeking to match an all-time legend.

Gabriel Martinelli's scoring record this season

At the weekend, having been played in-behind by Eberechi Eze, Martinelli cooly slotted Arsenal's second goal of the afternoon beyond Wigan goalkeeper Sam Tickle. This was the Brazilian's 11th of the season, only Viktor Gyökeres with 13 has more, but the breakdown of these goals is worth diving into.

Gabriel Martinelli's 2025/26 scoring statistics

Amazingly, in the Premier League this season, Martinelli has scored only once, this the dramatic, injury time equaliser against Manchester City in September. However, conversely, the winger netted in five successive Champions League appearances, the first-ever Arsenal player to achieve this, scoring six times in the league phase overall, as well as making it four in two in the FA Cup.

Thus, the Brazilian has become the first Arsenal player to score 10 times in cup competitions, so not including the league, since Ian Wright's tally of 12 in 1994/95.

Ian Wright's 1994/95 scoring statistics

That season, Wright scored in every UEFA Cup Winners' Cup match en route to the final in Paris, on target nine times overall, before the Gunners were heartbreakingly beaten 2-1 by Real Zaragoza after extra time at Parc des Princes. Nayim from the half-way line, and all that. There are though plenty of differences between the team now and back then.

In '95, Arsenal's sole focus was cup competitions, given that they finished 12th in the Premier League, only in Europe by virtue of winning the Cup Winners' Cup the year before. For Wright specifically, he netted 30 times across all competitions, bagging 18 of their 52 league goals, which is 35%.

Martinelli, on the other hand, is not producing in the Premier League. Given the Brazilian's style of play, Champions League matches, against teams that will have a bit more of a go, allows him to utilise his pace, as demonstrated against Wigan at the weekend. Unlike in the mid-90s, Arteta's team are chasing the league title, as well as cup competitions, so they need Martinelli to start producing more regularly.