Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright has criticised the club and manager Mikel Arteta over their treatment of winger Gabriel Martinelli, following his exclusion from the squad for their opening Premier League match.
The defending champions began their campaign on Friday night with a 3-0 victory over newly promoted Coventry City. However, Martinelli was completely left out of Arteta's squad, raising further questions about his future at the Emirates Stadium.
Gabriel Martinelli's Arsenal future
Martinelli appears to have fallen down the pecking order after the £34 million arrival of Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge. He joins Ethan Nwaneri and Gabriel Jesus as players whose futures look uncertain, despite Arteta insisting the trio remain important to him.
Speaking to Sky Sports on Friday, Wright said he was unhappy with how the Brazilian was being pushed aside.
"In respects to Martinelli and the way Martinelli has been treated at the moment it really makes me feel uncomfortable," Wright said. "Because he always gives 100 per cent, I'm not saying he's the greatest, he's really come up with some big moments for Arsenal, some big games, he's scored some very important goals."
Ian Wright's comments on Martinelli
Wright suggested that Martinelli was being kept in the dark about his status at the club, after also being omitted from Arsenal's Community Shield final squad earlier this month.
"The way he's been treated at the end here, I know they might want him out, and there's a lot of people saying, 'yeah, maybe it's time for him to move on,' but there's ways of doing that and it should suit him as well, how he wants to leave," Wright continued.
"Not being in the squad, not being spoken to, doesn't know what's going on, yes, I do know this, again, not being involved in the Community Shield squad, he doesn't know what's happening, I think he's got a year left [on his contract]."
The pundit argued that Martinelli could still compete for a place in the starting line-up, particularly after the departure of Leandro Trossard to Turkish side Besiktas.
"If you bring Vini [Vinicius Junior] in, that kind of level in, Martinelli can say to himself, 'well, okay, they've brought him and Tzolis, I might be third [choice],' but if you're bringing Tzolis in, and he's looking at Tzolis, you look at [Noni] Madueke on the other [wing], you're thinking to yourself, 'I think I can still have it with these two, I still think I've got something to offer here,'" Wright said.
"For him to be nowhere near it, it makes me feel sad for him. I'm just saying I think he's done enough with this team, with this squad, to be treated with a little bit more respect than he's being treated at the moment."
Gabriel Martinelli's £50 million valuation
Arsenal value the 25-year-old at around £50 million. Galatasaray have already submitted a £38 million offer, but Martinelli has rejected a move to Turkey and is only willing to entertain offers from top European leagues. Italian club Roma have also registered an interest.
His reluctance to step down is understandable, having played a part in Arsenal winning the Premier League title and reaching the Champions League final last season.
Martinelli has been a regular presence at the club since signing from Brazilian side Ituano as an 18-year-old in 2019. He has made 278 appearances across all competitions, scoring 62 goals.
His most productive campaign came in 2022-23 when he scored 15 league goals. Last season, he contributed 11 goals and seven assists in 53 appearances across all competitions.
However, he managed just one goal in 30 Premier League appearances, starting only 11 times, as Arteta opted to use Eberechi Eze and Trossard on the left wing.
Arsenal's victory over Coventry City
Despite the off-field drama, Arsenal started their title defence seamlessly against Frank Lampard's Coventry City.
Goals from Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, and Martin Odegaard secured a routine 3-0 win to open the new season.
Arteta has indicated that the club remains active in the transfer market as they look to build on last year's success.
"There is more that we want to do," the Arsenal manager said recently. "Because every time we have an opportunity to improve the squad and bring more quality and depth, we need to do that.
"We're actively trying to do so, the thing is, in the market, it doesn't just depend on you, and we're very clear on that. The will and the desire of the club is unquestionable, but we cannot promise that we're going to do it because it doesn't only depend on us."
He added: "For the margins to improve, there are very few players in the market that are available to do that and bring more quality to the club. But again, we're actively looking to improve that and we're going to try."
