Gabriel Martinelli

Gabriel Teodoro Martinelli Silva (born 18 June 2001), known as Gabriel Martinelli, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a left winger or forward for club Arsenal and the Brazil national team.

Born in Guarulhos, São Paulo, Martinelli started his career in 2010, playing for Corinthians' futsal team.

After making the breakthrough in football fields, he moved to Ituano in 2015, having subsequent trials at Manchester United and Barcelona.

On 4 November 2017, Martinelli signed his first professional contract until October 2022.

He made his professional debut the following 17 March, coming on as a late substitute for goalscorer Claudinho in a 2–1 Campeonato Paulista away win against São Bento; at the age of 16 years and nine months, he became the youngest player to play for the club in the century.

Martinelli scored his first senior goal on 8 September 2018, netting the second in a 4–1 win over Taboão da Serra, for the year's Copa Paulista.

On 18 December, he scored twice against Leeds United three days later, marking his first Premier League brace, with his first goal marking Arsenal's 7,000th scored in top-division English football.

Martinelli began his senior career playing for Ituano and signed for Arsenal in July 2019, aged 18.

Definitively promoted to the first team for the 2019 Campeonato Paulista, he scored six goals during the competition, being the club's top goalscorer as they reached the quarterfinals; highlights included a brace in a 3–0 away win against Bragantino on 15 March 2019.

Martinelli was reportedly subject to interest from a number of clubs but signed a long-term contract with Premier League club Arsenal on 2 July 2019, for a reported fee of £6 million (R$46.9 million).

Holding an Italian passport, Martinelli was not subject to the scrutinised criteria required for English clubs to sign South American players.

He travelled with the Arsenal first team to their pre-season tour in the United States.

He scored a goal on his non-competitive debut, in a 3–0 pre-season win against Colorado Rapids on 16 July.

Upon signing, Martinelli was originally set to play primarily with the under-21s in his first season, then slowly be integrated from the academy setup to the first-team.

However, Martinelli's impressive pre-season and quality in training encouraged Arsenal that he would be ready for immediate first-team integration.

Martinelli made his Premier League debut on 11 August 2019 in a 1–0 win against Newcastle United, coming on in the 84th minute as a substitute for Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

On 24 September, Martinelli scored a brace in his first competitive start for the club in a 5–0 victory over Championship side Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup.

His performance received praise from head coach Unai Emery, who said: "He's hungry to have that opportunity to help us, he is very humble, he fights. I told him to have some patience for his opportunity to do like he was doing. He did that. He deserved it".

Martinelli made his second start for Arsenal in a 4–0 home win over Standard Liège in the UEFA Europa League on 4 October, in which he scored another brace.

Martinelli kept up his goal scoring form, netting the equaliser in a 3–2 home win over Vitória Guimarães on 24 October, with another header.

In the League Cup fourth round on 30 October, Martinelli registered another brace in a 5–5 draw with Liverpool, and also scored his penalty in the penalty shootout, which Arsenal eventually lost.

As a result, he became the first player to score four times in his first four starts since Ian Wright.

Martinelli's performance received praise from Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp, who labelled him "[the] talent of the century".

Martinelli's performances led to him being awarded the Arsenal 'Player of the Month' award for October, receiving 75% of the total votes cast, beating out Mattéo Guendouzi and Nicolas Pépé.

After the appointment of interim head coach Freddie Ljungberg, Martinelli started his first Premier League game, scoring Arsenal's equaliser in an eventual 1–3 win over West Ham United on 9 December.

Martinelli represented Brazil at the 2020 Summer Olympics, winning an Olympic Gold in men's football.

He made his senior debut two years later and participated at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

On 21 January 2020, Martinelli scored in a 2–2 away draw at Chelsea, making him the first teenager to reach double figures in a season for Arsenal since Nicolas Anelka.

Picking the ball up outside the Arsenal box following a headed clearance from a corner, Martinelli ran the length of the pitch outpacing Chelsea defenders to slot past Kepa Arrizabalaga.

The goal was later voted as Arsenal's Goal of the Season by the club's fans.

On 3 July, Martinelli signed a new four-year contract, with a team option for an extra year, until 2025.

Shortly after, Martinelli was ruled out until the end of 2020, undergoing surgery to repair a lesion in the cartilage of his knee following an injury in training on 21 June.

Martinelli made his return on 19 December, coming off the bench to play 19 minutes in a 2–1 away defeat to Everton.

During the warmup against Newcastle United in the FA Cup on 9 January 2021, he sustained a minor ankle injury and was replaced in the line-up by Reiss Nelson.

Martinelli returned to playing in European competition on 18 February, making a 13 minute cameo appearance off the bench in a 1–1 draw against Benfica.

He scored his first goal of the season in a 3–0 away victory against Sheffield United on 11 April.

While previously playing in central positions akin to a classic number 9, under Mikel Arteta's tutelage, Martinelli was moulded to play more on the left-wing where he had more purchase to cut onto his strong right foot & utilise his rapid dribbling to unnerve defenders.

Martinelli missed pre-season after being selected on international duty in Brazil's winning Olympic Gold campaign.

Martinelli scored his first goal (a volley with his second touch of the game) of the 2021–22 season against Newcastle United on 27 November.

This goal of his was eventually ranked 3rd in the official Goal of the Season poll held by the club at the end of the season.