The concept of a “favorite” player is a little different for every person. Perhaps one person’s favorite player is the best on their team, since they contribute most to the week-in, week-out success of the squad. For many people, yours truly included, the favorite player is the one who has that “it,” that quality that makes you want them to succeed more than anyone else on the team.
I’m not sure I’ve ever really taken the time to sit and rank all of Arsenal’s players in terms of my “favorite,” but one thing I can tell you: Gabriel Martinelli is high up on my list. Since his debut, the young attacker has won my heart with his hustle, his chaotic attacking and his lovable personality. When I sit and think of which players I most want to become stars for Arsenal, Gabi always comes up.
That’s why it pains me to say this: I’m worried about Martinelli’s place in this Arsenal team. I know, it’s silly to try and decipher what’s going on behind the scenes. And there certainly are far more faithful fans than me, in terms of believing that everything will work out, even when there’s not necessarily any proof that it will.
There’s the sticking point for me: I haven’t seen any proof lately that Martinelli is going to be the player that I’m hoping for. He’s training every day, from what we hear in full health, and he’s barely getting onto the pitch. Particularly during the international break, Arsenal have been linked to strikers and wingers, Martinelli’s presumed two positions, seemingly every other day.
Are the links meaningless? Is Martinelli’s lack of minutes because Mikel Arteta doesn’t think he would help the club, because there are better players in front of him, or some combination of both? Is this part of some secret plan to keep him fresh for January? It may take some time to truly find out.
One thing I do believe is this: Whether it be due to COVID, suspension, injuries or AFCON duty, Gabriel Martinelli is going to get another chance this season. This time, though, he needs to show up and show out. I simply don’t think he’s done that this season in his few chances so far. What do I mean? Let’s take a look.
Let me start by saying I know that Martinelli started the first two games of the Premier League season under difficult circumstances. He’d just come off a long summer, including helping Brazil to an Olympic gold medal, and he wasn’t fully in form. But I’d still say his outings against Brentford and Chelsea were disappointing, the latter being less his fault.
Against Brentford, Martinelli made little of his 12 attacking touches and three touches in the penalty area. His only shot, a header from a corner, missed the mark. He also went 2/10 on duels and failed to complete a dribble. It was a tough game for him.
Starting up top against Chelsea was obviously a bit of a kamikaze mission, and Gabi managed only 13 touches all game, four in the attacking area. He didn’t register a shot, but Arsenal made only six all game.
Turning to the Carabao Cup, where Martinelli has gotten most of his work this season, Martinelli’s been just as disappointing. Look at his start against AFC Wimbledon, a golden opportunity for a player above that level to show his mettle and earn additional minutes. Martinelli was disappointing, going 1/4 on dribbles and 4/9 in ground duels. He made one key pass to set up a shot, but didn’t shoot himself, despite making nearly 60 touches.
It was a similar story in round three against Leeds United. Martinelli touched the ball 43 times that game, but didn’t make an impactful pass. He took two shots – one blocked, the other off-target. Martinelli was 3/7 dribbling and 7/13 on ground duels, both of which were better than the round before. One of the great things about Martinelli is that he doesn’t slow down, and that was the case against Leeds as well, with the youngster winning four tackles.
So, what am I looking for from Martinelli? We are fortunate to have a great example of making the most of your minutes on the same team: Ainsley Maitland-Niles. His wonderful performance against Watford, which made him a candidate for Player of the Match, is still fresh in the mind: Ainsley made 5 tackles and 2 interceptions, was 7/8 in ground duels and 1/2 in aerial duels, completed both of his 2 dribble attempts and made a key pass. He was also second in xGChain for the game, with 0.22, and tied for third in xGBuildup.
Ainsley was also a key competitor in that same Leeds cup matchup, winning 4/5 duels, blocking a shot, making a key pass and generally making life tough for the opponents in midfield. That’s making the most of your minutes from a non-starter squad position.
At the end of the day, fan or pundit speculation is just that: Speculation. We’re not inside the mind of Mikel Arteta, and we don’t know ultimately what he’ll do. But with Arsenal starting franchise cornerstones Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka every game on the wings, reportedly shopping for wingers and strikers to add to the mix and replace Nicolas Pepe, Alexandre Lacazette and (eventually) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and doing so even amid reports that Eddie Nketiah has decided to leave, it’s easy to wonder just exactly where Gabriel Martinelli fits into the long-term vision.
There’s a lot we don’t know, but one thing I feel pretty certain of: Weird things happen every season. Martinelli is likely to get some more minutes, probably in a relatively disadvantageous situation like an injury or suspension. And I really hope, since he’s one of my favorites, that he shows up in a big way.