Gabriel Martinelli: More Than Just a Player for Arsenal

2019/20 – Hope

When Gabriel Martinelli arrived at Arsenal in 2019, we were a very different club.

The Wenger era was over, Emery was struggling, the team had lost its identity, and we were heading towards one of the lowest points of the Emirates era.

Then this 18-year-old Brazilian arrived from Ituano.

And suddenly, there was something to believe in.

Martinelli scored 10 goals in all competitions in his first season.

Arsenal finished eighth, but he was one of the few genuinely exciting things about the team.

He ran at defenders, chased everything and played without fear.

Most importantly, he gave us hope.

2020/21 – The Setback

A serious knee injury interrupted his development.

He barely featured, while Arsenal finished eighth again.

It was a frustrating year, but Martinelli came back – and became part of something much bigger.

2021/22 – The Rebuild

Saka was becoming a star. Ødegaard was emerging as a leader. Arteta’s Arsenal was beginning to take shape.

Martinelli was right there with them.

Six goals and six assists in the league doesn’t tell the whole story. His pace, energy and willingness to attack defenders made him an important part of the new Arsenal.

We finished fifth.

For the first time in years, it felt like we were going somewhere.

2022/23 – The Peak

This was Martinelli at his best.

15 Premier League goals and five assists.

He wasn’t a promising youngster anymore. He was one of the league’s most exciting wingers.

Watching him and Saka tear into teams from opposite wings was one of the great joys of that season.

We didn’t win the league.

But we’d gone from eighth to title challengers – and Martinelli had been a huge part of that transformation.

2023/24 & 2024/25 – The Questions

His numbers dropped.

Six goals and four assists in 2023/24, followed by eight and four the following season.

The criticism was understandable. We’d seen what Martinelli could do, and we wanted to see it consistently.

He remained a very good player – quick, aggressive, hardworking and capable of producing moments of brilliance.

But the question changed from “Can he become a top player?” to “Can he become world class?”

And perhaps that final step never quite came.

2025/26 – The Strange Ending

Martinelli was still part of Arsenal’s journey when we finally won the Premier League.

And then he was gone.

Al-Hilal paid around £60 million, making him Arsenal’s record outgoing transfer.

I understand the football argument.

I understand the financial argument too.

If Arteta no longer saw him as indispensable, and if the club needed significant transfer income, Martinelli was an obvious asset to sell.

But that doesn’t make it easy.

Because I don’t just see a £60 million player when I think of Martinelli.

I see that 18-year-old running around the Emirates when Arsenal were struggling.

I see the goals.

I see the celebrations.

I see him alongside Saka as we started believing again.

I see the title challenge of 2022/23.

And I see a player who was there through almost the entire journey back.

More Than the Numbers

Martinelli leaves Arsenal with 278 appearances and 62 goals, an FA Cup, a Premier League title and a place in the club’s modern history.

He may not have become the superstar we once imagined.

But that doesn’t diminish what he gave us.

He arrived when Arsenal were lost.

He grew alongside Saka.

He helped take us from eighth place back into the Champions League and into genuine title contention.

And eventually, he was there when we finally won it.

That’s why I’ll remember Gabriel Martinelli fondly.

Not because he became everything we hoped he would.

But because he was there while Arsenal became what we hoped they could be.

Thank you, Gabi.

Reader opinion: Kia

Have Your Say

How will you remember Gabriel Martinelli’s time at Arsenal? Was he an important part of the journey that took the Gunners back to the top, and what are your favourite memories of Gabi in an Arsenal shirt?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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