Gabriel Martinelli only returned from his holidays late last week, having been away at Copa America with Brazil over the summer. But the winger was straight into the action, coming off the bench in Saturday’s friendly against Manchester United.
Many players need time to get back into the swing of things after their summer holidays, but Martinelli was immediately up to speed.
The winger was a constant threat in his substitute appearance, scoring the winning goal, netting a penalty in the shootout, and earning Arsenal’s Player of the Match award.
If anything, Martinelli was unlucky only to score the one goal, as he was put clean through for another fantastic opportunity only for the assistant to incorrectly raise his flag for offside.
After the game, Mikel Arteta was clearly impressed with the 23-year-old’s impact.
“That’s the mentality of the team and individuals – one training session and he comes in and plays at that level,” Arteta enthused.
“That means that he’s not coming here to get prepared, he’s come prepared to show where he is and that’s a very different approach and I loved it.”
Martinelli has a few more games to stake his claim for a starting spot before Arsenal’s first competitive fixture against Wolves on August 17th.
The Gunners face Liverpool on Wednesday night (00:30 BST on Thursday UK time), then Bayer Leverkusen the following Wednesday (7th), and Lyon that Sunday (11th).
