Gabriel Martinelli has become a transfer target for Galatasaray, the reigning Turkish league champions, according to The Sun and TalkSport. The club has contacted Arsenal to discuss possible terms for the 25-year-old Brazilian forward.
Martinelli lost playing time at Arsenal last season after the club signed Greek forward Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge, further complicating his path to regular minutes.
Alternative to Rafael Leão
Galatasaray had first tried to sign Rafael Leão from AC Milan but could not advance those talks, which pushed the Brazilian onto the Turkish club's radar as an alternative.
The interest follows Mohamed Salah's recent move out of the Premier League. The former Liverpool forward signed a two-year contract with Trabzonspor, also of Turkey.
Contract situation
Martinelli is entering the final year of his Arsenal contract. The club holds an option to extend it by one more season, but the uncertain contract status raises the likelihood of a deal being struck this transfer window.
A sale could prove lucrative for Arsenal. The Sun reported the club expects to receive more than the 35 million euros, about 266 million reais, that Liverpool paid for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in 2017, still Arsenal's record transfer sale.
